Don’t cry for me, Argentina

Helen, are you there?

Of course I am here. Where the hell would I be? In Argentina with Governor Sanford?

I’m sorry Margaret. I don’t mean to snap at you. It’s just too damn hot and everything in the news right now is driving me crazy. The Governor from South Carolina decides to skip town for a few days – not even telling his wife where he has gone – and then acts surprised when it makes the news. And so it appears that yet another Republican politician couldn’t keep his Johnson in his pants.

Senator Ensign is still apologizing for it and now Govenor Sanford has joined the adultery parade. Is there something special about a Republican tallywacker that it requires so much attention? I mean honestly, Margaret – One day they’re just so concerned about who is sleeping with whom and then the next day they’re shacking up with some bimbo in South America. Tell me again why gay people can’t get married?

But it’s not just Republicans. It seems that politicians in general have an issue with keeping it zipped. The only difference is that one party decided to make it a moral issue and the other one rightly thinks it’s a privacy issue.

Margaret, if I have to listen to one more hypocritical apology from a holier than thou politician too stupid to keep his indiscretions secret… well, I’m not sure what I would do but a girl can wish… can’t she?

And speaking of wishes… I wish we could just vote out the Dicks and vote in the Janes.

Imagine a world where women were in control of governments. Children would never go without health care. Corporate executive bonuses and private jets would happen only after corporate day care centers and meaningful maternity leave were paid for. Birth control would be free and Viagra would be priced based on the going rate for a barrel of oil. And by that I mean to say the price would go up and down without making any sense – much like the penis in question.

I know. I know. I sound cranky. Well I am. It’s just too damn hot and my flowers look pitiful. I think I will go have a nice, big glass of iced tea. But before I leave you, let me just say that what is happening in Iran is complicated and I am damn glad a smart man is sitting in the Oval Office. I mean it. Really

Oh my, Helen, listen to you, dear. Yes, I do think it must be the heat.

All I can say about all of that is thank the Lord for Cable Television. All I know is that the day we got cable television here in Maine is the day I finally got a good night’s rest. I’m in bed by 10 p.m. What my Howard does after 10 p.m. is his business. All I’m saying is that maybe more politicians should watch late night cable television and we wouldn’t have all of these problems. Maybe that is the answer, dear.

Go water your plants, Helen. It might just take your mind off things for a while.

This is off topic, but I thought I would share this suggestion: A group of us are checking all our purchases and E mailing the companies whose products do not say “MADE IN THE USA” !
The unemployment rate is frightful. We need to take the effort and find items that are produced here. Many items simply say DISTRIBUTED in the USA – NO SHIT, SHERLOCK – someone in the US has to deliver the imports to local stores! We’re also sharing the names of any products that ARE made in the USA. Let’s do it together !

I really enjoyed your blog until you got stuck on the gay rights and feminist stuff. Give it up. The majority of Americans do not run around talking of their sexual preferences and cry when they get shut out. I really don’t care what the homosexuals do and it shouldn’t even be news. And the feminist bullshit about electing women over men, and building more day care centers suck. Why don’t we just hire women, pay them, and let them stay home with the kids? They do it anyway don’t they?

Not only can Sanford be the poster child for “traditional family values,” not keep it in his pants, and then lie about it, can you imagine Sanford actually asking his wife for permission to visit his mistress (she said “no” but he went anyway)? Can you imagine how his wife feels when he proclaims, in public, that he’s strayed before, but/and his Argentine mistress is his true soul mate, the love if his life? Kicking his sorry ass to the curb would be the mildest of responses. I’m thinking a little Lorena Bobbitt justice here!

Helen, just don’t wish for “Janes” instead of “Dicks.” How about sanity, compassion and lack of hypocrisy? Remember that Michelle Bachmann of Minnesota is a woman and right wingnut who, among other idiotic beliefs, is paranoid about the U.S. census (but who may “no census” herself out of her own Congressional seat – we can hope!). Remember Cynthia Davis of Missouri 19th State Senate District, who opposes funding school lunches for kids during the summer, saying “Anyone under 18 can be eligible? Can’t they get a job during the summer by the time they are 16?,” adding “Hunger can be a positive motivator” (“Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?”). Last, but not least, remember that Ann Coulter recently said the assassination of Dr. George Tiller was not murder, only “a 203rd trimester abortion.” Ugh!

James, you are welcome. And, I have had two rottie/shepard crosses. Both were wonderful dogs. My pure rottie was the hunter. She managed to catch a marmot once and brought it to me as a gift. Oh boy… Plus, I can sometimes exhibit dog-with-bone tendencies ;-)

As for Sanford, I am not surprised that he *ahem* crossed the line with some others. Why do I get the feeling that is an understatement?

…just an idea, when you built a pool, take one side of the steps and offer as “dog-steps” / ramp and make a combi design, put it out on the web and get backup from greytdog concerning Chlor levels, waterchanges etc.

Greytdog, offer hydrotherapy over the same site,

kill two flys with one pool, make a ton of money!

If it works, all the royalties I want is a ticket and an invitation to a pool-party ;-)

Yes, lori, I am like a “dog with a bone.” It got me through the hardships I mentioned in previous posts. Most of my family is like me. So is my wife.

For example, my cousin who had a similar injury as Christopher Reeves lived 36 years with what usually takes a person on an average of nine years. My cousin could only move one finger. She raised two daughters with the help of nurses, and traveled across the country, including a visit to Alaska and to Ground Zero while the rescue and recovery was still continuing. She posed with fire fighters and one kissed her. Later, she returned.

Each year, she held a “birthday party” to celebrate the day of her rebirth.

I don’t know if it is genetic or cultural, though many of the previous generation lived activilly until almost 100. We also have a small quirk. Many of our feet are long and slim with two middle toes larger than our big toes. I can write my name and pick up things with my feet. My second cousin picks up quarters.

Several in laws have said we can be a little overwhelming when you get seventy of us together as happened almost two weeks ago for my cousin’s memorial service.

TBNTJudy, thank you. We have a rottweiler-shepard cross. She came as a stray and had learned to live off the land. So far, she has killed and eaten at least 18 raccoons.

Poolman, my late cousin spent her last years in Tuscon, and her daughters and families still live in Arizona. One of them wants to hold our next reunion at her home in Arizona.

Susan in Ct, I heard the same as you about the lack of a will, and the debt. He will probably earn more money dead than alive. I also heard the Beatles were forced to sell their song book because they couldn’t afford the high taxes, and that Micheal still makes a lot of money from royalties. If his family is smart and doesn’t fight over the estate, his children should be well provided for.

Contrary to reports that their e-mail had been leaked by the other man she mentioned to Sanford, Chapur revealed that someone else had “hacked” into and seized control of her old Hotmail account in late November. She believes that same person then sent the stolen e-mails in December to the South Carolina newspaper and the other lover.

“Far away from being the author of this evil action,” she said, “he was instead another victim.”

Chapur filed a series of formal complaints against an Argentine Internet service provider and worked through Microsoft to regain control of the e-mails and close down the account.

Despite having strong suspicions about who “may have done this great damage” to her and others, Chapur said she doesn’t have enough proof to expose the hacker.

“I am not the one to judge anyone,” she concluded. “I leave this in God’s hands.”

It is time for privacy laws.
I firmly believe the entire Sanford affair deserved to be exposed in all it’s gory details. However, I still contend that it was morally wrong to publish the emails.

Ms. Chapur may have recourse to a lawsuit if she so wishes. According to Argentina’s privacy laws, International transfer of personal information is prohibited to countries without adequate protection.

In November 2000, Argentina passed the Law for the Protection of Personal Data (LPPD).[544] It is in conformance with Article 43 of the Constitution and based on the European Union Data Protection Directive and the Spanish Data Protection Act of 1992. It contains provisions relating to general data protection principles, the rights of data subjects, the obligations of data controllers and data users, the supervisory authority, sanctions, and rules of procedure in seeking habeas data as a judicial remedy. Habeas data is a special, simplified and quick judicial remedy for the protection of personal data. International transfer of personal information is prohibited to countries without adequate protection.

Poolman, most k9 hydrotherapy places use the Ferno underwater treadmill – which is good. I like a pool so my bigger dogs can swim laps, do resistance work, and also snag some playtime afterwards. Reg. pools are okay but difficult – you have to carry dogs up and down the stairs, and to do any type of meaningful therapy work, there isn’t enough “shelf” in a reg pool. I’ve been talking with a couple pool folks here but they can’t seem to get it. So just found a company from UK that specializes in K9 hydro-pools & have a rep coming out to see the layout here. It’s $$$ but it’s also my business I’m growing. . .one paw at a time :)

TBNTJudy: Most dogs may be smarter than their owners, but not mine. To use my uncle’s phrase, she is dumber than a stump. She is a whippet and I think it’s that tiny little brain pan. However, she is 15 now and getting fragile, bless her heart. She is a good dog all in all.

You Mid Westerners just keep on, we can scroll and skim if we want to.

Us Hawaii people are guilty of the same, eh Sistah Jean? btw, the book is fiction. I am not a non-fiction kind of girl, except for the borderline non-fiction/fiction of the Bush conspiracy and such. Kind of like Stephen King mixed with John Grisham. Except there is no justice served in the end.

Mika, you cracked me up! I needed a zinger.

Can’t wait for June to be over. So much tragedy, injuries, and death. Take care everyone.

I built a pool for a couple in N Scottsdale just for their Chihuahuas. Real custom with a ramp and short steps for their little legs. I thought they were pulling my leg after the initial sales call, but I kept a straight face and got the job. Some people will go all out for their pooches, for sure.

Hmmmm…I think I might have found a niche market to help weather this economy…

I find it very interesting that somewhere in the annals of history, we can always find parallels. All we have to do is change the names, times and places. The names now are:

Republican ideology: Hanging onto the ‘old ways’ for dear life. Money! Money!, Money! first, and then No!, No!, No!. Pessimism to the core. Absolutely No creativity or ability to think about innovation. Just regurgitating the same ole, ole recycled words and phrases over and over again as they strut around like peacocks.

Democratic ideology: Why not try something new and different as we build on the foundation of the old? But first, we have to mop up the mess left behind. Optimism and hope for a better future for not just a select few but for everyone.

I can’t say I know enough about ‘Cap and Trade’ to discuss it intelligently. That’s why we elected our representatives and hope they are doing their jobs. (Well, most of ‘em.) But for starters, it seems to me though that anyone who has been to Los Angeles or Beijing can look out of a multi-storied building and see that the blanket of brown stuff is not natural, but man-made pollution. Further, any high school chemistry student can tell you that CO2 is mostly man-made starting with we as mammals breathing OUT CO2 and then building vehicles that belch out even more. And we humans have been busy, busy, busy cutting down the trees and foliage that breathe IN CO2 and breathe OUT oxygen. Got that? OK.

Will ‘Cap and Trade’ solve all the problems? Of course not. Are there glitches in it? Yes. Over time will the bill need to be tweaked here and there? Of course. Will new and different circumstances arise? Undoubtedly.

Will sitting on our hands, doing nothing or sitting on the sidelines nit-picking and whining solve problems? Waiting until a crisis erupts, hit the panic button and then rush in with something like a 3 trillion dollars package through congress when the inevitable meld-down occurs? Lordy, doesn’t anyone remember what happened at the tail end of the Bush, Inc. administration? It wasn’t that long ago! Or maybe Obama can go find some brush to clear a la Katrina. Or a fiddle to play like Nero while Rome burned. Sheesh!

C’mon. The election is over. The democrats won. Instead of wallowing around in the past of who said what and when, I can only hope that everyone, Democrats, Republicans, and Independents can all get on board and come up with IDEAS that might help solve these monumental problems. To the future!!!!!

Keith, we’re gonna bore all these people, if we haven’t already. Paul Scheiman I recognize. He graduated in 76. I was not friends with him. Paul Gibson is not familiar. I worked at the Pelican and Orlandos on Q as a waiter while attending TT Art dept., then I worked for Empire Pools on Memphis Ave. My wife worked at Uncle Spuds that became the Checkmate Restaurant, Cold Water Country Honky Tonk on the loop and University in the backstage bar, Pelican, and Gardskis’ Loft on Broadway. We both also worked for Civic Lubbock as stagehands.

Two aliens landed in the Arizona desert near a gas station that was closed for the night. They approached one of the gas pumps and the younger alien addressed it saying, ‘Greetings, Earthling. We come in peace. Take us to your leader.’

The gas pump, of course, didn’t respond.

The younger alien became angry at the lack of response.

The older alien said, ‘I’d calm down if I were you.’

The younger alien ignored the warning and repeated his greeting. Again, there was no response.

Annoyed by what he perceived to be the pump’s haughty attitude, he drew his ray gun and said impatiently, ‘Greetings, Earthling. We come in peace. Do not ignore us this way! Take us to your leader or I will fire!’

The older alien again warned his comrade saying, ‘You probably don’t want to do that! I really don’t think you should make him mad.’

‘Rubbish,’ replied the cocky, young alien. He aimed his weapon at the pump and opened fire. There was huge explosion. A massive fireball roared towards them and blew the younger alien off his feet and deposited him a burnt, smoking mess about 200 yards away in a cactus patch.

Half an hour passed. When he finally regained consciousness, he refocused his three eyes, straightened his bent antenna, and looked dazedly at the older, wiser alien who was standing over him shaking his big, green head.

‘What a ferocious creature!’ exclaimed the young, fried alien. ‘He damn near killed me! How did you know he was so dangerous?’

The older alien leaned over, placed a friendly feeler on his crispy friend and replied, ‘If there’s one thing I’ve learned during my intergalactic travels, you don’t want to mess with a guy who can loop his penis over his shoulder twice and then stick it in his ear.’

Susan:
I have to admit, I had to read your comment a couple of times before I realized you were asking me if I was someone you know. I’m slow like that sometimes… it’s like opening the refrigerator door and then suddenly wondering what the hell you were after in the first place. But no, to answer your question, my first and last names are not alliterative. Keith is actually my middle name, my first being Harold. You understand why I am known by my middle name. Last name starts with an “F.” I take it you know someone from Hobbs? Small world!

Poolman:
I went my freshman year in high school at Eastwood in 1971-72, but graduated from Hobbs in 1975. I lived in Lubbock from 79 to 86. I’m over there at least once a month and will be over next week to the doctor. I love Lubbock and would live there again in a heartbeat. Got to meet Maria Elena Holly (Buddy’s widow)… fun story.

And I’ve got family in and from Colorado City and nearby. In fact, pick and exit on I-20 between Odessa and Dallas and I’ll name a relative or two.

As for the Cotton-eyed Joe; I gotta be pretty drunk to dance that one! As such it’s been a while.

Donna:
You think they pass out Viagra at GOP meetings or what? Those guys got it goin’ on!

Katrina:
I heard that there was no will and then I heard that the attorney that has the will in his safe is out of town, thus no will YET. It’ll all go to the attorneys anyway…. the kids will have to wait for tuture song royalties. The only one I really feel for is Janet… she and MJ seemed alot closer to each other. Poor MJ, the circus is only beginning to gear up.

Now you’ve got me intrigued with the Alexander McCall Smith book. Is it fiction? Maybe not. With fiction, especially a mystery, I’m like an alcoholic with a new bottle. I HAVE to finish it to find out who done it. Which often involves 2-3AM.

Currently I am reading Herodotus’ “The Histories”, (not in the original Greek!) Since he is considered the ‘Father of History’ every historian sooner or later cites him. So I thought I’d go to the source. Great stuff! But you know what a history buff I am.

For the record, my back is almost ‘fixed’. Two more PT sessions and two more epidural shots and meds free. My blood chemistry is still that of a 16 year old, although I fear the joints aren’t. I’m a little creaky when I first get up in the morning but fine after I move around a bit. So now I can get on with some of the activities I had put on hold for the past several months. Whoopee!

Standard poodles are pretty awesome dogs. Have a couple of them that I work with in k9 hydrotherapy. So very very smart. My favorite likes to “herd” his tennis balls – and he counts them too. . .Border collies are brilliant but usually smarter than their owners so the owners get all fussed out. . .

BTW, I’ll be playing with my avatar soon, so y’all don’t freak okay? It’s just time to ‘feature’ another one of my puppers. . . .

I think the asshat group should be reserved for the trolls. I have been reading the comments here, and for the most part, even though there is disagreement among the regulars, most are civil in their disagreements. Like so many said, if you don’t like the comments, don’t read them. Or, take the challenge and improve on them if you can…something constructive would be nice.

Keith and Poolman, I have worked for the oil industry, as did my ex-husband, and I have seen plenty of environmental abuse, as well as other problems. It is all about money for the oil companies, but you know that.

Greytdog, I’ll join you virtually for that fiddle playing, drinks, and chat. Just my cup of tea..

James, thank you for your well-written comments. I appreciate your grace under fire, and you have given me much food for thought. Same goes for dissenting posters..I appreciate your arguments.

Werner, my poodle is of the Standard variety; they were hunting dogs in another life and are known to be the second most intelligent dog after the Border Collie. I have also owned rotties, german shepard dogs, and dobies, to name a few. I have a Lhaso apso, which you would not like, but the Tibetans believe that certain lamas are reincarnated into Lhasas, so I think I’ll keep him.

Imaginista, Yes. Nice temps, eh? Gotta love the blast furnace. And Helen thinks Texas is hot. Where else can I build pools year round? Of course, not until this economy mends. Sedona is wunderbau! I enjoy it when I can get up there. I just can’t make a living there with what I do.

Hey there, Poolman, didn’t know you were in Phoenix (aka HELL) too! It’s been home for 26 years now, but I’m planning to get out eventually. I love Tubac and Bisbee but my partner does not. So far we both agree on Sedona.

James, My wife’s GF was Elmer Pickens, a saddlemaker in CC, Tx. Never met T-Boone or Slim, but all cut from the same cloth. I moved to Phoenix in 94 and haven’t looked back.

Yeah Katrina, we can have a ho down. But the “Cotton-eye-Joe” is more appropriate. I got “Thriller” in my head too. I think they are just going through all the hits and videos – there are plenty! He was very famous. This is still his comeback. Unfortunately, he won’t be the beneficiary.

Greytdog, I’m sure MJ is thrilled that his mama and papa are all in his business. Vultures, I say. Too bad, but not at all surprising. They can’t really have him stuffed, can they? They would for sure. You’re right.

Donna, where did you get that tidbit? That would sure make it less “noble”. Love, my a$$.

katrina, ROLF!!! Oh i so agree. . .
My cynical self laughed out loud when I heard that mama and papa jackson were already in court seeking “custody” of the kids & the money. . . I waiting for the news that Joe Jackson will have MJ stuffed and sent out on tour. . .anything to make money off his kid. . .

I just heard that they are now reporting that Michael Jackson had no will. Could that be possible?? Oh, boy… I guess we can forget about all other news happening in the world for a while. If I can’t get this “Thriller” sound track out of my head, I’m going to be doing the moonwalk in my sleep!!

Anonymous, I said you would hard pressed to find a president who had/have Obama’s numbers. He has only been in office for 6 months, there was only one other president, since we have kept these kinds of records, that has had his numbers in the first six months. No matter how you slice and dice it ands as much as it pisses you off he is a popular president.

I will not get into the battle of the talking point links. That bores me .

I will only say I am THRILLED we have a president that has the balls to touch the “third rail” issues especially when it comes to doing the right thing (right on keith). If you don’t like it or agree….. then I suggest your get your ass out there and work for someone who best suits your beliefs.

James, I am guessing people have told you “are like a dog with a bone” a few times in your life! LOL namaste’

Kieth and Poolman, I have been in your part of the country too. It is pretty but awfully hot sometimes in the summer. I agree with T. Boone Pickens’ goals too, even if he has done unsavory things at times. He sees potential profit ahead.

His pipe line should have been stopped. The Ogallalla Aquifer is running dry as you know. It reminds me of Mulhullen’s “theft” of central California water to supply Los Angeles.

Poolman, have you met T. Boone? How does he act when the cameras are off?

I remember when I was in high school, when a reporter said, Stockton, I think that was the town, had 18 inches of snow. It amazed me.

Obama said Cap and Trade would virtually break the coal companies, and force new technology on us. Unfortunately much of the technology doesn’t yet exist. Wind farms are in our area, but they produce a only a small percentage of our energy needs. We need to remake the power grid to fully utilize wind power.

Bloomberg reported the possibility that Cap and Trade will make us more dependent on foreign oil because it will be cheaper for them to buy oil overseas than to drill it here.

Cap and Trade will hurt some parts of the country than others. It will also hurt small businesses. The screws will tighten over time. So far, no one I have heard has been able to explain the bill and how it will help reduce green house gas emissions.

It seems based on unproved assumptions.

One assumption is that humans have caused the world to get warmer. But that hypothesis fails to explain why the climate changed before we were able to pour carbon compounds into the air.

El Nino, the Pacific Decadal Ossilation, and other external factors influence our climate. ISU’s state climatologist said five or six years ago that he estimates 5% or 6% global warming is human caused. It may not seem like much, but the small percentages are like compound interest. They add up over time, so we do need alternative energy sources.

Our recent warming trend has stabilized though we are still pouring CO2 into the air. If natural factors also produce temperature swings, might not they override what we are contributing? An upswing combined with our green house gases would emphasize warmth. Natural cooling would counterbalance our contribution and temperatures would fall, though not as far as if we were not here.

Thus, before I support Cap and Trade, I want understandable data proving it will change our climate. I also want to know in detail, facts, time lines, and not guess work regarding how it would enhance our energy independence without breaking our bank.

I don’t think any one knows what is true or not. Our leaders are making assumptions. It is the same as going to a doctor with chest pains and having open heart surgery because of an assumption it is a heart attack.

I think the money would be better spent on an alternative energy Manhatten Project with incentives for private researchers too.

Keith, I’ve traveled through Hobbs many times on my way from Lubbock to El Paso. Graduated HS in El Paso. Attended TT in Lubbock. I even built a pool in Hobbs for Blue Haven, many years ago. Was in Lubbock for 18 years and know that whole area like the back of my hand. All the little towns off the “Hub of the South Plains”.

My wife is related to T-Boone Pickens. Her family is originally from Colorado City, Texas. I agree he has an agenda and “robber baron” is a good description. In the land of the “good ol’ boys”, for sure!

Small world. Yeah. I’ve seen the scarring and though the scenery was nothing to “write home about”, it WAS certainly nature friendly.

Born and lived about half of my life right here in Hobbs, NM…. the balance in Midland/Odessa, Lubbock, El Paso, DFW and the swamps in Louisiana.

Flying into Midland International (I don’t know where ‘international’ they fly) you can see the surface destruction caused by the oil industry. And because mineral rights, and the access to them, trumps surface rights, landowners are generally powerless to protect the integrity of their land.

And, while I’m ranting, although I am a big supporter of the energy policies being advanced by T. Boone Pickens, he’s not a saint. He has purchased vast areas of water rights in the Texas Panhandle and has created his own water utility. He’s using the powers granted to utilities to advance the building of a water pipeline from the Panhandle to DFW…. so he can freely pump water from the Ogallala Aquifer (the one that I and a great portion of the Midwest depend on for our very existence) and sell it to DFW. Another robber baron.

Back to Cap and Trade…. of course it’s going to cost us. So did seat belts, air bags and unleaded gas. Seems we’ve done okay so far.

Doing the next right thing is rarely the financially expedient choice.

“The whole point of cap and trade is to hike the price of electricity and gas so that Americans will use less.”

Not! The point is to force energy producers to pursue cleaner energy, penalizing those that don’t and rewarding those that do. This in turn should improve the impact we have on the environment and force us to use energy more efficiently. And yes, I know that the energy companies that pay more will pass the costs on to the consumer. We can hope that those who get the credits will pass on the savings also. I learned long ago that if it doesn’t affect the pocketbook, it will not cause change. We are a money motivated society.

Thanks. That is a better read. And does bring up some concerns. Some of the statements contradict the other source, and I find this last link less bias, IMO. I think a lot of concern is the speed at which some of this legislation is being run through the system. Sure wish so many in government really had all our interests in mind.

But remember there are many with wealth and clout throwing out roadblocks to thwart any positive change that is being implemented.

Yes, it does slant right. That doesn’t change the facts that amendments were proposed that would help working families regardless of their political affiliation and they were defeated.

Powerline may slant right as well, but this has been reported elsewhere. It just happens to be the piece that was published on RCP today. Right leaning or left leaning, this is what happened:

“Less than two weeks before the agency formally submitted its pro-regulation recommendation to the White House, an EPA center director quashed a 98-page report that warned against making hasty “decisions based on a scientific hypothesis that does not appear to explain most of the available data.”

The EPA official, Al McGartland, said in an e-mail message (PDF) to a staff researcher on March 17: “The administrator and the administration has decided to move forward…and your comments do not help the legal or policy case for this decision.”

I never said my links were the gospel. However, the two facts which were presented are in fact true, regardless of the “slant” of the publications that put them out there.

poolman…
the WSJ slants right…so…the article makes it sound like a cover up….if so shouldn’t you be pissed…..or is it OK because the left is doing it…
what happened to the transparency…..hell….what happened to the science…..”the U.N. ordered that no recent research be considered in the IPCC report. This is a scandal of which too few people are aware. As science, the U.N. report is a bad joke”

Kris…
cap and tax has to go through the senate and probably the house again then….no matter how anyone feels about this call/write/e-mail your congressperson and demand that they read the bill first before voting on it….the 300 extra pages at 3:00AM was a farce…..

where’s this transparency we were supposed to get….Barack…tell Nancy and Harry…..they forgot…..

the scariest thing to hear….”I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”

Very RW slant to your links, so a bit hard to accept as gospel. The main founder, John H. Hinderaker of Powerlineblog:

“He has been a consistent supporter and often admirer of George W. Bush…”

and wrote regarding Bush:

“A man of extraordinary vision and brilliance approaching to genius, he can’t get anyone to notice. He is like a great painter or musician who is ahead of his time, and who unveils one masterpiece after another to a reception that, when not bored, is hostile.”

Hey Phil, well I did volunteer two summers in a row at the Cub Scout camp. . . so that either qualifies me for den mother or certifies me for looney bin. . .I’m thinking looney bin. . . 75 little kids. . . arts and crap, (i mean, crafts), owchery (archery), and rock falling(Climbing). I had to teach boating safety. . .more like how to fish your kid out of the water without tipping the canoe. . .) oy! One lady actually sent her kid with a very beautiful down quilt – no tent, no sleeping bag. . . sheesh….

“Even as Democrats have promised that this cap-and-trade legislation won’t pinch wallets, behind the scenes they’ve acknowledged the energy price tsunami that is coming. During the brief few days in which the bill was debated in the House Energy Committee, Republicans offered three amendments: one to suspend the program if gas hit $5 a gallon; one to suspend the program if electricity prices rose 10% over 2009; and one to suspend the program if unemployment rates hit 15%. Democrats defeated all of them.”

This will hurt alot of regular people, whether they drive an SUV or not. If you are unemployed, you still have to keep the lights on in your home. You still have to drive to interviews or to your job. I’d have liked to see more flexibility in this bill.

” It’s my opion that those that are yelling the loudest about how the cap and trade approach to dealing with global warming is going to ruin lives and jobs are the very ones that it’s going to affect most. They might have to change their lifestyles… might have to trade in that Hummer or Escalade or Expedition (that speeds past me at a rate not even resembling the speed limit)…. ”

Yesterday I heard a Jim Hightower comment about Mr. Welch, CEO of GE (do I have that right?) who said he’d had a change of heart after some surgery. Did he decide he’d give more to charity, or bequeath a lot to a scholarship fund or fund a new wing of a hospital? No, he was now going to stop buying cheap wine, and allow himself to spend $100 a bottle.

The Army is using the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy to muster Lt. Choi out of the Army. Sign the petition saying it is not right.

We are now allowing criminals into the military because we have to relax the rules to get enough people to serve. Lt Choi is an honorable veteran, well thought of by his peers, it is time to allow brave people to serve without consideration of sexual preferences.

I lived in Texas for much of my life and also NM. I had some friends in the oil business and learned much from them about the abuse of the environment and it used to really get me worked up.

Additionally, I found it interesting in the heyday of the early 80’s that they kept drilling wells and mostly capped them off and moved to the next site and did the same thing. Apparently, the cost of oil was not high enough to actually pump those wells. The companies were just going to wait until the prices went up before they would pump them.

And yes, the toll to the water resources that are all underground is still an issue. Not to mention the sink holes, smell, and surface destruction. Oil field work is a nasty and dirty business. And it is “cleaner” than coal!

And Ruth, you forget that Joan has upgraded to the bionic 2.0 version! Her brain may cease to function at some point, but all those other parts have much longer warranties!

OOOOOh, let’s DO talk about the oil industry. I live in Southeast New Mexico, in the Permian Basin oil fields. New Mexico just enacted new “pit rules” for drilling. If you know anything about drilling, you know there are a variety of fluids used that are extremely toxic. For many years these were held in earthen “pits” after use….seeping into the ground and risking our very fragile aquifer. Pit liners have been required for sometime, but New Mexico has recently enacted new pit rules that are very stringent, all in an effort to protect our ground water sources. The oil industry is outraged. Seems it will cost them money. I hardly think money is as scarce a resource to an oil company as water is to residents here in the Southwest. They’re screaming and yelling, saying they’ll just move production to other, more accomodating states. Financial blackmail. Once again.

My part of the state is frantically diversifying our economy in order not to have to depend on these particular ass-hats. We are building a uranium enrichment facility that will supply half of our country’s need for enriched uranium. We competed valiantly for a spent fuel recycling facility that would take spent fuel rods, currently stored on-site at nuclear power plants, and recylce them to be used again. But the Bush administration killed the project… wanted to study it more. They’ve used this process in France for decades.

Sorry, but when you talk about the oil industry I really get steamed… even though I grew up in their ‘cradle!’

>Sen. Barbara Boxer had been chair of the Senate’s Environment Committee for less than a month when the verdict landed last February. “Warming of the climate system is unequivocal,” concluded a report by 600 scientists from governments, academia, green groups and businesses in 40 countries. Worse, there was now at least a 90 percent likelihood that the release of greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels is causing longer droughts, more flood-causing downpours and worse heat waves, way up from earlier studies. Those who doubt the reality of human-caused climate change have spent decades disputing that. But Boxer figured that with “the overwhelming science out there, the deniers’ days were numbered.” As she left a meeting with the head of the international climate panel, however, a staffer had some news for her. A conservative think tank long funded by ExxonMobil, she told Boxer, had offered scientists $10,000 to write articles undercutting the new report and the computer-based climate models it is based on. “I realized,” says Boxer, “there was a movement behind this that just wasn’t giving up.”<

Trdesman: Good for you. I have a hybrid and I do like the idea of bike riding from AK to OR but not this summer.

Bush and Cheney kept saying they were not convinced and all environmental indicators and warming of the planet continued. Bush policies just allowed a mining company to dump their trailings into a natural lake which will kill all the fish. Bush would have allowed access to any and all oil deposits in AK but when the spill happens, there is not retribution for those whose livlihoods and lives were devistated by the oil spill and spoiled drinking water. (Supreme court decsions with Bush Justices made the above possible.)

We now have a President who can read data and make decisions based on science rather than making his buddies wealthy.

Tradesman: From your response, I take it that you do agree that we have a glut of SUV’s on the road largely built during the Bush years. We, the US government, and the auto industry went for profit and not what was right for the country.

Your small pickup, like my Ranger, can do most of what a big Pick up can do.

The oil industry is funding much of the anti-environmental information. I would like to mention the tobacco industry said their was no proven connection to cancers and illnesses.

The industry boys are in it for the money and will lie to get their big bucks.

JuneauJoe….
enough of the SUV bull…..I’ve got an S-10(4 cyl…2-wheel drive)….I suppose you go from Alaska to Washington by bike!!!!!!!before this pick up I had an earlier S-10 and before that a chevette and before that a vega…..

I just not convinced that this warming is caused by CO2…from some charts we are at a low for the last 10.000 years..

Phil Miller and Fran. I understand your frustration, but I don’t know who is forcing you to read the comments. You actually have to click on the comments to see them or scroll down. If you have something more edifying to add, we (us asshats) would love to read it. Really, I mean it.

Yes, some of us ‘regular’ commentors are full of it. Fran and Phil… you forget that the healthy debate of ideas and personal perspectives IS THE BASIS of American society… the very foundation of our freedom. Us ‘regular’ commentors respect that each of us has a unique take on everything and the exchange and debates that ensue are how we learn, how we progress as a people, how we expand our minds and hearts.

Many of us ‘regular’ commentors are proud to be just that… regular. We are impassioned and compassionate. We genuinely care about those around us. We debate because of this… because it matters. If you have an issue with that, go somewhere else. Otherwise, sit back, read, study, and contribute. Just like us ‘regulars.’

By the way, I doubt you’ll find many of us ‘regulars’ out cheating on our partners (I’ve never been to Argentina) or defrauding people out of their life savings (Madoff got 150 years… hell yeah!). You might find us mowing our neighbors yard for the hell of it, though.

We’re just regular people that give a damn. And we give a damn about what other’s opinions are on many subjects. We’re even interested in yours…. just play nice.

‘Cap and trade was designed, tested and proven here in the United States, as a program within the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. The success of this program led The Economist magazine to crown it “probably the greatest green success story of the past decade.” (July 6, 2002).’

Weather patterns are changing and that is not a good thing. Did you notice the fires in Southern CA about 7 years ago. They have been in a drought situation which has dried up the trees and forests, which, when they burn cause massive destruction.

Emo had an early freeze but they have also lost the perma frost which was the norm there 20 years ago. They now have bugs which they had not seen 20 years ago. They even had 100 degrees 2 years ago – weird things occurring and that is not good.

But, you want to drive your SUV and not feel guilty so you ignore the realities of the true environmental issues. There are extreme changes to the environment which if ignored, will affect the lives of my grandkids.

Helen and Margaret,
I have been reading your blog for a long time now…never commenting…just enjoying your posts…you two are just awesome. I wish a publisher would discover you two and publish a book. You two are just too funny together.
You are lucky to have each other and WE are lucky to have such access to both of you.

They have been studying the perma-frost of AK for 20 years. We have massive melting of perma-frost.
We will have the Northwest Passage available for sailing because the ice caps are melting.

In the village where I was, Emmonak, the people were saying they used to have 40 and 50 below but now it is 20 to 30 below zero. Carbon in the air is warming our world. We let Bush pull the ‘burn baby burn’ for 8 years and things have gotten much worse.

Bush was wrong! Obama is now trying to make long needed corrections. I wish we had reasonable environmental policies in the past but it is time to make massive changes.

JuneauJoe, I didn’t like some of Bush’s environmental policies either. His policies helped get us where we are, but so did the Democrats’. Many Democrats who are trying to fix our economy helped cause the recession.

I agree Bush and the Republican Congress gave us Obama. Our Republican legislators deserved to lose. They blew a good opportunity.

Prove us dissenters wrong about Cap and Trade.

We are not energy hogs. I can speak only for our family. Our house is well insulated and we don’t use air conditioning. I open windows at night and close them in the morning. On Tuesday, the high temperature was 96. Inside it was 78. We drive a 1991 Ford Festiva, a 1999 Escort, and a 1999 Taurus. We hang our washing out to dry. We raise some of our own food. We unplug eletronic devices at night.

Not everyone can do those things, but those who are able would probably cut carbon use at least as much as the Cap and Trade bill would.

Yes, the Civil War was the right thing to do. My great grand father was with Sherman in his March to the Sea, and his injuries killed him at an early age.

Any business person must weigh the costs vs benefits before implementing a new plan or maintaining an old way of doing business. I believe Cap and Trade is more expensive than its benefits. It will make some people feel “good about saving the planet.” It will make some people rich and many others poorer. That makes it the wrong thing to do.

Prove me wrong with examples of how well this scheme has worked in other countries and how much it has reduced green house emissions.

Thanks for the help Anonymous and UAW Tradesman. My wife jokes I need help in other ways.

Bush got us there. I am referring to the economic, geo-political mess we are in. Bush pushed big vehicles, “They are trying to take away your SUV!”
and cut any and all trees and dismantle environmental policies. Bush had a war with the envirionment and we now need a new approach to make up for the stupidity of Bush and Cheney.

The Republicans will take any extreme comment as to the results and blow it up ten fold. People, even news folks, esp Faux news, will take the most extreme comments and that becomes the new fact. Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. The Republicans have been wrong on so many fronts – if they say it and or tried it – IT FAILED.

Republican policies gave us President Obama and I am thankful. Cap and Trade needs to be plut into practice. We cannot continue the Bush disaster.

Having seen and talked to people who study the melting of perma frost and ice caps – it is serious stuff. The policies of the past are heating up our earth and we have to change.

Thank God we have a President who has he ideas and the courage to turn our environmental approaches around.

lori, the Omaha World Herald printed an article describing Cap and Trade effects on our local economy. OPPD (Omaha electricity customers) would pay an extra 25% by 2012 and possibly 97% by 2030. This would translate into $250 in 2012 and $1,000 for each household in 2030. These figures are for Cap and Trade alone, not the inevitable inflation adjustment or loss of jobs.

“This legislation alone will eliminate jobs by increasing electricity bills, and if recent history has taught us anything, when energy prices increase so do the prices of most other necessities such as food and clothing. ”

The Waxman-Markey bill would hurt the Midwest more than coastal areas because so much of our energy needs come from oil and coal. Legislators threw in benefits for farmers at the last minute in an attempt to change votes. Mandates for ethanol would be assured, and farmers could sell their land’s capacity to store CO2. Farmers pay dearly for herbicides, fertilizers and fuel which are largely oil based.

Taxes will surely take costs to higher levels and make it harder to make a profit. Farmers may be forced to rely on what they earn sequestering carbon dioxide in their soil to counter balance the higher expenses. Even that may not be enough. Some in our areas will earn money from wind farms. No matter what happens, we all will pay more for food and clothing and anything coal or oil based.

Poolman, you may be able to afford higher food prices, but what of the families who can hardly hold their households together now?

Suggested help for the industrial Midwest to pursuade their legislators to go along had the equivalent of Smoot Hawly which helped prolong the Depression.

Whatever CO2 our sacrifices save will be counterbalanced by India, China, and other countries who don’t participate. Spain and other European countries have not been able to make similar policies work as expected.

Obama’s desire to drastically change our government and economy is fact. He has hinted as much, and our July 8 issue of Time Magazine touches on the similarity of Obama’s and Roosevelt’s plans. Just because some Republicans complain doesn’t mean Obama’s plans aren’t true. This administration’s recent history also supports what I wrote.

Another column states “Roosevelt was a hero, but some of his policies actually delayed recovery for years.” Several writers presented the same opinion a few months ago, and critics dismissed them as Republican partisans. How do you explain Time Magazine’s now printing the same view?

The Cheney-Pelosi poll is more significant than you know. It means little by itself. It shows that if the Republicans can find an effective spokesman who can take advantage of the voters who are becoming worried about the direction this country is moving, he/she will create problems for the Obama adminstration. His popularity is higher than his projects. That is another danger sign.

Obama is riding high in the polls. I’m not talking about now. I’m discussing the future when he will be less popular than he is now. I suggest as a good politician, Obama knows this and he understands he is vulnerable to even lower poll numbers when he makes mistakes. On Sunday, one of his advisers hinted they might raise taxes on the Middle Class. That alone would make people angry.

lori, don’t place me with conservative Republicans. I supported Jimmy Carter’s conservation efforts and I also supported increasing fuel and emission and fuel standards on vehicals. We also practice what we preach. My wife drives a 1991 Ford Festiva to school on many days.

Annoumous, Cap and Trade will take A LOT of money from me. Planting trees is well and good, even though it will make food more expensive, but what of places where it is too dry for trees? A two hour drive west of us is sandy ranch country. How will ranchers compensate for higher expenses?

Even if saving carbon in the soil brings us payments and ethanol raises the price of corn and soy beans, added expenses and taxes combined with job losses will be a net loss for farmers in my opinion.

A comment on Omaha radio station KFAB hinted that oil companies will be able to make more money by relying less on domestic production and buying oil for sale from foreign countries. That alone countervenes the stated goal of Cap and Trade.

Presidents don’t authorize spending, Congress does. To say Democratic presidents create smaller deficets than Republicans is overly simplistic. A more accurate generalization comes from comparing spending by who controls Congress and also world conditions.

We are discussing a scheme which will make a few companies and Wall Street bankers and Carbon traders even richer while the rest of us struggle. Obama’s policies have changed Bush’s nightmarish deficits into unimanagable debt. Even the Russians and Chinese have warned us of the danger we present to our selves and the rest of the world.

I don’t see much wrong with Annoumous’ pen name. Most of the people here post with pen names. If more than one did they would be harder to keep track of.

Honolulu Sally, we are in this together, and the water is slowly boiling us all. Compare this year to last. Did you ever imagine how deeply we would venture into European socialism by now? Both Democrats and Republicans got us here.

Oh, by the way, I apologize for the numerous typos…… it’s Monday morning, I have not yet had enough caffine… I have a leak under the kitchen sink that was ‘fixed’ Friday evening (not) that will eventually necessitate all new sub-floors and cabinets….. I have eight loads of laundry to do today…. gotta wash the dog so she’s clean enough to take to the groomer…. and there are more weeds in the garden that veggies! Then I have to fix lunch!

It’s my opion that those that are yelling the loudest about how the cap and trade approach to dealing with global warming is going to ruin lives and jobs are the very ones that it’s going to affect most. They might have to change their lifestyles… might have to trade in that Hummer or Escalade or Expedition (that speeds past me at a rate not even resembling the speed limit)…. never mind that although it might cost us some money, and the current estimate is that it will cost each household $175 a year, but never mind that it’s the RIGHT THING TO DO.

Reminds me of another issue that so divided our country. People fought (really fought) because it would cost them money, would radically change the way they lived their lives, never mind that it was the right thing to do….. remember the Civil War?

Ponder that comparison for a moment. Painful? Yes. The right thing to do? Yes. Did it move us forward and make us better? Yes again.

Doing the right thine OFTEN costs some money, often involves a bit of sacrifice and chage. But we are AMERICANS. Doing the right thing is what we are about, right? Okay. Enough said….. let’s move on to something else like giving shovels to each citizen to help the Republicans dig themselves out of the crapper!

Jean, have you ever read Alexander MCall Smith’s books? I am currently reading (listening to on tape) The Sunday Philosophy Club. The main character in it – Isabel Dalhousie – reminds me of you. A writer for an ethics publication involved in a murder mystery. She talks about good manners, as do you. (Although I am still cracking up with your remark weeks ago telling a troll to die already).

Interesting comments lately, lots of sad news of losses.

Has anyone seen the cartoon of the frog in water, and it is happy in the cool water, and as it starts to heat up slowly, it is still fine until the temperature is so hot, the frog dies. (was that a link from here?)

Well, it seems to me the Republicans are in that water and it is getting hotter. They are just getting more accepting of the flaws and booboos of their own, not realizing the overall killer situation they are in. I imagine Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Michelle Bachman, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly in the water just blowing more and more hot air in to the point of bubbling, and any Republican/conservative numb enough to stay in the water with them will get boiled.

Anonymous, please take a name so we can address your right wing comments by name.

As for voting out the Dicks and voting in the Janes, yes, but this Alaskan says not just any Jane will do. Only intelligent, rational, well-educated, ethical, non-hypocritical women with a sense of humor and no overblown sense of self-importance need apply. No Palins, please.

Since Margaret and Helen are our hostesses here, I think it is only courtesy to express our gratitude to them from time to time for allowing us to come here and air our pet peeves and commentaries. Most of the bloggers do, especially when M&H post a new one. A few just launch off immediately in all directions, which is fine. But let’s at least acknowlege our thanks for making this blog possible.

You will be hard pressed to find another president that had/have Obama’s numbers.

Several presidents have had these approval numbers – Kennedy, Bush Sr. Johnson, Eisenhower, (article was pre-Clinton) . Bush Sr. had a 89% post Gulf War and it was still up at 71% the next year and Johnson went up from 68% – 71%. More importantly most of these numbers were NOT in the first year of office when a presidents numbers are generally high. As you said 62% is not a failure as a president but it is the sign of an average president.

More importantly, I do have a legitimate question.

I have heard that Australia is ditching the Cap and Trade as a failure, that Spain has 18% unemployment since enacting it and that Germany’s carbon emissions have gone up.

I want someone to convince me that this CAP and TRADE is worth it. Prove that they are lying about other countries getting rid of it, show me a country it has worked to reduce the emissions without an increase elsewhere, and give me data (not platitudes) that it won’t send our economy into a recession. Although I am of the less-is- better mind-set and think that American’s are spoiled rotten so giving us reasons not to spend our money on cheap plastic junk is a plus for me.

Anonymous, if it helps the American farmer plant more crops (or fruit trees), it will be an incentive to farm more. It hasn’t been profitable for them for sometime. If we pay more for the crops grown in other countries, it will be more incentive to buy American, IMO. The price might go up for consumers, but if we use domestic labor we are bound to spend more at the grocery store.

Then we need to eliminate the damn subsidies (different topic for another time)….

I believe it is “Cap and Trade” or “Carbon Tax”.
2 different ways to penalize polluters. I think you are mixing the 2.

Also, if you are concerned with sending our money and jobs overseas…TOO LATE! That is what has been happening for sometime now and has weakened our economy. Primarily, IMO, due to corporate greed and a lack of wanting to comply with EPA, OSHA, and other US regulations. Unfortunately, we as capitalists usually look to the bottom line and ignore the longterm harm of our ways. We will continue on that path, if left on our own and without regulation. We keep proving that to the detriment of our kids, and their kids, etc…

I am not 100% behind Cap and Trade, as it is difficult to monitor, and as James claims, puts more government control in the mix. But I don’t see how that sends more money to China.

lori….
bull….
“It made our American made cars more competivie and desirable, it actually CREATED new jobs in research and development”
what jobs??????over seas…..the US isn’t going to make it with “would you like fries with that”…the manufacturing base has been taxed out of the US…and the cap and tax is just sending more money overseas……China has 1/5 of our economy and produces more greenhouse gas than we do…..do we really need to send them money to lower emissions….guess where your cap and tax money will go….there…not stay here……different formula so it costs less made there….and it helps us how much????
what about it James….your still farming….how much is cap and tax going to take away from you????what is going to happen when the American farmer makes more money planting trees and we have to import wheat, rice, corn, milk….and pay the carbon tax on shipping…..the cidiots aren’t going to make it…

lori…
WTF….
“It made our American made cars more competivie and desirable, it actually CREATED new jobs in research and development”
YEP…just look at all those car jobs….Hell look at a jobs…..we need good manufacturing jobs….factory jobs….the US isn’t going to make it with”would you like fries with that”

lori….
WTF….
“It made our American made cars more competitive and desirable, it actually CREATED new jobs in research and development”

yea….just look at all the jobs….(in other countries…..cap and tax…..more money for foreign countries……we need jobs here…….manufacturing jobs…..factory jobs……the US isn’t going to make it if the only jobs are “would you like fries with that”

Oh and one more thing… This cap and trade rant is again another GOP FEAR tactic… You guys said the same shit when we demanded the cars change their emissions. The republicans ran through the streets yelling it was going to cost us jobs and it would drive the auto industry out.. WRONG.. what REALLY happened? It made our American made cars more competivie and desirable, it actually CREATED new jobs in research and development AND we cleaned up our air to boot!.

This reversionary history that the republicans like to do and do soooo well…USE to work…… Not this time… NOt this time..

Well james we will just have to agree to disagree, If you believe that 62 percent approval rating is an indication of an unpopular president and that a slip from 75 percent to 62 percent is an indication of anything other than a natural and completely understandable shift then we have nothing more to discuss. You will be hard pressed to find another president that had/have Obama’s numbers. I am not a “fortune teller” and have no idea what is in store for the future of our nation. One thing for sure in politics … noting is for sure…. But if you have an inside tract i bet your party would love to hear your visions.

I have already addressed the foolish comparison of Cheney and Nancy. In comparing the two people and their poll numbers, shows a lack of political knowledge and ignorance concerning significant polling indicators.

The rest of the garbage about Obama having hidden agendas and Obama and Rahm Emanuel having plans to “change our system of government” is just bullshit. I won’t even dignify that trash with a response.

As far as the “spending” … Historically democrats run a more fiscally balanced country. Look it up…. Our economy does better with a democrat in the oval office…. Simple as that… Republicans are the spenders and they are the taxers as well, only difference is they tax the middle class. namaste

lori, some people here and members of a chain e mail discussion group I participated in before my eye went bad gave the impression Obama would remain popular through his term. It has been too many months for me to remember the details.

The Drudge Report linked to a Gallop poll which showed Cheney leading Nancy Pelosi in the polls shortly after his speeches. Generic Democrats led Republicans by six or seven points in January. Now they are about even.

The movement of numbers to me illustrates potential future political weakness. Republican cheerleaders to the contrary, if “Darth Vader’ could improve his popularity a little with a couple of speeches, it shows a segment of the population is uneasy. If conditions deteriorate, a perceptive politician will capitalize on the unease to his/her advantage.

Some Republicans lost elections before the main one last year. It was a warning sign they apparently ignored. I doubt that Obama is ignoring the possible voting shift. It is the same as my stopping to check a strange noise in my combine. It may mean nothing, but I would pay attention, just in case.

Obama is popular now. He likely won’t be later. I think the Art of War by Sun Tzu applies to political battles too. Waging war when conflict and competition are minimized reduces the cost. Chances for victory are enhanced when a nation takes advantage of momentum for maximum advantage.

Obama has the momentum now and a confused, weakened Republican Party makes it easier for Obama to take what he can. (Cheney’s little surge in the polls also illustrates a vacume which is now Republican leadership. They shouldn’t cheer too loudly.) I agree, with you, he may be biting more than he can chew, but Obama’s goal is to do more than improve the economy.

He wants to change the way our government operates, and as Rahm Emanuel said the opportunity is too good to waste. That is why though I agree with you, I would do the same as Obama is now, because the economy is only one of his concerns. His chance won’t come again.

As you know, most of the spending to create jobs so far, concentrates on government, not private employment, and most won’t begin to be spent until around the next election. Obama says Cap and Trade is about jobs, but it is about energy control. Once Democrats turn their plans into law, they will be in place no matter what, and Obama will be responsible for a realignment worthy of FDR. He also hopes to re align voting habits as FDR and Reagan did.

I don’t believe the United States can afford all of the spending now, but I am projecting what I would do if I were Obama with his attitudes and values.

I’m sorry to read Gale Storm died. She outlived her fame and no television specials will feature her. Still, her longevity gave her the better of the deal.

Billy Mays bumped his head during a rough landing on a US Airways flight yesterday…. later said he didn’t feel well and went to bed…. his wife found him dead early this morning… autopsy tomorrow. He was to be 51 on the 20th of July.

Gale Storm was 87 and was living in a convalescent hospital; she had been in declining health for some time. Her autobiography was published in 1980.

I’m afraid of who’ll be next; the theory of the threes. Last week’s three: Ed McMahon, Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson. They’re going way too fast.

My bad – the vid is meant to be uploaded via facebook/twitter to folks in Iran. We received word in the last 24 hours that three of the folks we’ve been working with in Iran to maintain portals have been arrested. We are trying through other means to get more information, but so far nothing. Unconfirmed reports that one of our contacts is in custody of the Imperial Guard and badly injured. . .but again, hard to sort truth from flak. . . All the news about Sanford, MJ, etc. . . has sort of overwhelmed the public attn span on Iran. . .and the fact that this ‘revolution’ isn’t instantaneous. . . as Reza Aslan said, we’re on a long simmer now. . .

I won’t have a chance to read all the comments, so it’s likely someone else already said the same thing: “vote out the Dicks and vote in the Janes” is fine, except for Palin. Get her OUT of office, and never ever allow her in again.

The newspaper, The State, did not hack the email account. Apparently, or so “sources” say, the spurned Argentinian lover of Sanford’s Argentinian lover hacked her account in order to find out who his rival was. . .and once that was discerned, sent copies of the email to The State. The State newspaper couldn’t/wouldn’t verify an unsolicited “source” so chose to sit on the emails themselves, while using them as a compass to point them in the right direction. . .adding into the mix of course is Mrs Sanford who pulled the best tip off – “I don’t know where he is and I don’t care” – And unless Argentina has privacy laws covering email accounts, then no one technically broke the law by obtaining & distributing the emails. . .

Right now Obama’s popularity matters naught – the media (old & new) is all MJ right now. . .gack. But this little notice came in today from E&P: The family of Walter Cronkite has gathered together . . .and they do not expect him to recover. IMO, Walter Cronkite is an icon and a hero.

Raji, It was my understanding the paper had obtained the e-mails from and outside source, and held onto them until now. I had not heard they were “hacked”.

James, I don’t know what particular bloggers and posts you are referring to in your response but I will submit that the president IS popular and has GREAT numbers.

Some would argue about the wisdom of taking all of these major issues on in the first 6 months of his term especially since he had to take on the economy. Political capitol or not. Personally I would be advising him to ease up a bit if I were getting paid to give him political advice. But since I am NOT and I am just an ordinary citizen I am over the moon he has the balls to take the tough issues on.

The GOP talking point of Cheney is more popular than Nancy is again ridiculous. The SOH is a partisan postion. It is HER job to be divsive and partisan. It is no surprise her polls are low. Comparing a SOH to a past VP is again a misrepresntation. Now if you were comparing Gore’s numbers to Cheney you would have a point… BTW gore’s is about 20 points higher (at least last I looked).

Lori, I see your point and would normally agree.Who could forget the “blue dress” and all the TMI !!!!!
These emails were hacked, therefore illegally obtained and dated in 2008 not pertinent to the current issue in my opinion. It made me sad to read them. Actually I couldn’t finish reading. I expected something like that from a tabloid, not a state newspaper.

lori, I agree it isn’t rocket science, but the day I made that prediction several posters seemed to think Obama would preserve his popularity through his term. I suspect some still do, and I was repeating a point the average fifth grader could understand.

A recent poll showed Dick Cheney more popular than Nancy Pelosi, though both are in the cellar. That came after only a couple of speeches defending his war policies. He knocked Obama off his stride for a couple of days, and Nancy Pelosi stuck her foot in her mouth.

It is a sign the president faces future weakness if conditions become worse. I would do what he is doing. Obama and his allies are rushing legislation through so fast they can’t read the bills. Obama is a smart politician, and he knows his popularity will fall. He probably knows Democrats will likely lose seats during the next election. In that respect declining popularity means something. Bush learned it the hard way as he squandered his “political capital.’

I agree about the privacy laws. I am a volunteer weather observer. Four years ago, I called the office and told them a four mile wide band of snow remained a few miles north of us. He said they had seen it via satalite. I replied I wished the snow band was over us so I could cross country ski another time. He said “Check the lane south of your house. You can ski for about a half mile.”

Raji, while I always feel uncomfortable when hearing about intimate details of anyone’s life. HOWEVER

The govenor is a public figure, he was the one who WILLINGLY put himself in the postion of being exposed. HE wrote the e-mails.

E-mails, myspace, facebook accounts are routinely examined these days even by the private citizen applying for a job, or apply to a university. I would think the govenor of a state would be held to the same standards as a high school senior.

What is good for the goose is good for the gander, don’t we all remeber the “blue dress” and the intimate details of the “blue dress” and the cigar ????? I sure do…

I think whats fair is fair up and until the laws are changed to apply to everyone, they should be used on everyone including the govenor..

With all due respect james your political calculations aren’t exactly rocket science.

It would be impossible for Obama to sustain 75 percent approval ratings.. his poll numbers were bound to drop. You and I had a discussion about his poll numbers a while back and I admitted and “predicted” that the numbers will not stay this good for the democratic party. Especially when we are tackling huge issues such as a MAJOR depression, healthcare, big oil/energy. These are BIG BIG issues.. Any one of those issues could end a political career for a politician.

I will go out on a limb here and be Psy chic and perdict Obama’s numbers will go down even further! Perhaps to 57-55 percent… But that my friend is still a mighty popular president.

Policies always poll lower than the person btw.. the assertion that indicates anything is ridiculous.

Quite frankly, I could care less if Sanford & his wife reconcile or not. None of my business. But the fact that he was (one of) designated moral leader(s)who would show the rest of the country how to be good & righteous people. . . yeah, I’m snickering. Plain truth: I don’t like Pharisees. White trash? I dunno. Hypocrite? Yes.

Honolulu Sally, I try to separate the politics from the product. I hadn’t thought of the connection, but she is something like the left wing version of Ann Coulter. In the early days, we fanticized about a mud wrestling match between Janeane and Ann.

Janeane Garafalo is an under rated talent. She by her own mismanagement, perfectionism and inability to get along with co workers sabitaged what could have been a more important career. Part of her seems not to believe she deserves great success. She called her production company “I Hate Myself.”

At one time, a troubled teenaged girl posted on the forum. A court ordered that a security person accompany her around the school building. Janeane was her hero, and she made a bracelet for her. The girl gave her the bracelet when she met her outside of one of her performances. Janeane was gracious, and she showed the bracelet publicaly. She publically thanked the girl. Janeane will never know what she did for that girl.

Micheal Medved and Janeane debated the Iraqi war. He said Janeane was rough and over the top on camera, but when the cameras stopped, she was a “sweetheart.” That, he said is unusual. Many entertainers turn into jerks away from the camera.

For those reasons, I discounted her over the top comments. I had enough when she dumped on TEA Party demonstrators. She was insulting my wife, my two cousins, and several people I know who are nothing like her characterization. That and my bad eye made me decide not to waste any more time on her, but I miss the forum. One man who posts on the forum told me Janeane’s leftist friends left her out to dry because they also thought she had gone too far.

Poolman, I agree with your list.

Honolulu Sally, a long time ago, you asked what I meant when I wrote we faced interesting times. I predicted we would either own auto companies or they would go bankrupt. I predicted we would own or control much of the banking system. Those things have happened.

I also predicted Obama would soon “own” the financial crisis, and he, not Bush would take the future blame or credit. People want their employee to produce. Criticism is beginning now, as Obama is more popular than his policies. NBC had a news story about the promised jobs Obama’s administration failed to save or create. Biden said the administration had miscalculated about the stimulus plan.

Even Congress doesn’t know all of what Cap and Trade will do. Thanks to a late night vote buying agreement, farmers will benefit enough that they may be able to counter balance the greater costs inherent in the bill. In respect to Cap and Trade, we may be among the chosen people. Many of the rest of you, not so much.

Wait two to four years when inflation strikes. Thomas Sewell wrote that were the Republicans not so hapless, they could be making political points now. They are fools fighting old political wars with the equivalent of the French Magino Line.

Some “I voted for McCain” people are partisan Republicans, but not all. Obama’s poll numbers will continue to drop until the economy improves. It is the normal ebb and flow of politics.

Regardless of whatever one thinks about the Sanford affair, I find it appalling that a state newspaper printed private emails between two lovers. I call that “white trash”

“As America snickers at the governor’s steamy emails to his lover, Lee Siegel wonders why no one—in a country so sensitive to individual freedom—is protesting the invasion of Sanford’s privacy.

The biggest riddle of all is why sophisticated adults can make merry over the exposure of two people’s most intimate thoughts and feelings, under the pretext of condemning a public man’s private folly”

Jean, My son does “digital music”. He doesn’t do real physical sound, rather he makes new sounds using computers. I guess you could say it is purely technical and very unconventional. It is also a hard stretch of the imagination to call it “music”, for it is in the emerging stage of evolving into a new art form. It is beyond my scope of understanding.

James, I am amazed that you were a Janeane fellow. She is a bit over the top for me, kind of like the left wing version of Ann Coulter.

Poolman: Redneck, Good ol’ boy, White trash, Hypocrite; I like the simpler labeling of Helen – they are all Asshats. They belong together along with the lady in the BMW with the “don’t blame me, I voted for McCain” bumper sticker. Geez, Obama has been President for only 5 months. The Asshats are stirring themselves crazy.

Proud bragging grandma speaking here. Update on our grandson’s baseball ‘career’. He has been an outstanding athlete right along in both basketball and baseball. He is a very big kid for his age. At age 14, he is 6’1″, size 15 shoe! Not telling how big he will be when he’s grown. I had uncles, 6’4″ and 6’6″, so its in the genes.

For about the past 6-7 months he was in a Baseball League. They had been playing in tournaments all over Eastern PA, Maryland and Delaware. These leagues are pretty expensive! $800.00 to join. $$$$ for mitts, uniforms, etc., to say nothing of expenses for weekends at the tournaments.

If the video comes through, our grandson is in a red shirt, #36. There is a closeup of his face at the beginning of the second game.

Anyway, he was ‘scouted’ at a recent tournament. The scout is from a Major League pro team. He talked to our grandson and gave him his card. The upshot is that he offered him a slot in their training program – all free! Of course, our grandson was thrilled out of his gourd! His parents agreed to let him give it a try – with reservations. (His mother has been a PE teacher forever, so she is up on all this stuff. Far better than we are!) So that’s what he is doing this summer. He is playing and training with 18-21 year-olds. The scout calls him in the evenings frequently to see how he is doing and what he has been up to during the day. So they keep close tabs on him.

It has been pointed out that this will look good on his college applications along with other considerations – straight A’s in school so far.

Our son, his dad, was a pretty hot swimmer, as my husband was a hockey player. Our son got a little cocky when his high school team was going to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for Nationals his senior year. He was aiming for the Olympics!!!!! In practice, he did a flip turn and hit his heel against the wall, spliting it all around, horizontally. It required unpteen stitches and kept him out of the water for quite a while, although he did go with the team to Nationals and had to sit on the sidelines. Bummer.

So his parents know the perils of aiming for a sports career no matter how tempting the fame and big bucks are. All it takes is one injury and without an education……….. We are staying out of it with our opinions except to congratulate and support the kid.

Also this summer he is spending all day, two days a week, doing some wonderful volunteer work. There is a very large Jewish complex near their home. It is an Assisted Living/Nursing Home with also a children’s Day Care Center. Both grandkids went there. We picked them up a few times when we visited. Lovely complex. Anyhow, our grandson is there to do whatever they want him to do. Visit the residents, play games with them, mow the grass, whatever.

We are justifiably proud of him!!!! He has his head screwed on right. But still, he is only 14!

There are plenty of great kids out there, unsung, doing their thing. I feel there is a lot of hope for the next generation.

I just watched the african-thunderstorm video several times. Fabulous!!! As you know, music is my first love. This is a fascinating piece of talented innovation. You said this is what your son does. In what capacity? Is he in the singing group? The technical side?

Thanks so much for sharing!!!

This gives me the courage to put up the latest on one of my grandsons. Bragging like a Christmas letter. Werner checked me out on how to put stuff up on the blog. I hope I got it right.

Poolman, I just scrolled up and saw your definitions of white trash and red neck. Had I checked earlier, I would have written “I agree.” Someone wrote they can be in all income levels. I agree with that too.

One thing we did on the Janeane forum when it was more active was write group and individual stories. For example, I had Janeane melting down on her Air America show. She made Cyndy Sheehan cry on air as she excoriated her for being a wimp and not fire bombing Bush’s ranch house. Others wrote chapters and took the story into funny directions. Later, someone re wrote the story and put it on a web site. I still have a printed copy.

It would be against the rules, here, but I miss the group stories.

We celebrated Janeane’s birthday with a virtual drunken orgy in an imagionary lodge house. Good times.

Honululu Sally, I answered your post, but I don’t see it here, so I’m trying again. I posted with the Janeane furum for six years. We had some mean wars, and I was banned often in the beginning. Some activily tried to drive Republicans away, and I was almost the lone survivor.

I think I am still a moderator, and once I was an administrator. But that is a long story. We became e friends because we helped each other when we were down, and because we transcended politics.

We also did wild things with words and had a lot of fun. I miss how it was.

My understanding of white trash comes from my father’s family who lived in North Carolina for ten years. White trash are nerdowells, one step ahead of the rent collector and sometimes practitioners of petty theft. They are often lazy.

Red necks are like Larry the Cable guy, hard working good ol’ boys and girls who like to have a good time and who are sometimes uncouth.

In my opinion, Sarah Palin fits red neck, but not white trash. Glenn Beck is too citified to be a red neck, though he shares some attitudes. Read Christmas Sweater. Beck’s family was poor but hard working and upwardly mobile.

The Janeane and Kathy Griffin forums had moderators, rules and definitions. I think I am still a moderator in Janeane’s forum. According to them a troll was someone who posted to disrupt the site. Disagreeing with prevailing opinion was not what defined a troll. Impoliteness did. A troll is like someone at the next table who insults you for no reason while you are eating in a fine restaurant.

Honolulu Sally, I posted on the Janeane Garafalo forum for six years. I was banned over twenty times in the first six months. Some of those times were due to a computer error. The posters drove all of the few Republicans away except me, though a libertarian, I think is still there. One of the posters created multiple people to gang up and attack me. My Air Force experiences made me as implacable as a cockroach.

When that guy threatened to turn me in to Homeland Security for joking with another about explosives, I tried to call Homeland Security first. I knew it was mismanaged months before Katrina, because the number an FBI office gave me was a of a home security safe company.

After I left, he said I was the only Republican he liked. He thought I would be happier with a conservative message board.

Several were 9/11 truthers, but we got along. We got to know each other personally, and considered politics just something to argue about.
Three gave our daughter and our son in law wedding gifts. Several of us have met face to face. The woman who lives near our son wrote the article about Janeane Garafalo for Ms Magazine sees us when we visit California.

They learned I could keep their personal secrets, and we tried to help each other during the bad times. The man who tried hardest to drive me away later applogised to the whole group. When he needed money, I offered to buy him a new DVD player.

One 9/11 Truther and I made care packages for the troops in Iraq. He and I also have donated money to the charity another poster works for in the Phillipines.

Thanks to one of the posters, I guessed national weather for a farmers almanac for three years while he edited it. I said I had never done anything like that. He said it didn’t matter, because he wasn’t paying me. One weird result was our high school class’s “it girl” saw my guess while she was browsing in a Kansas City book store. She called me to be sure it was I.

In the old days, we celebrated Janeane’s birthday with a racous party in an imaginary club house. The party started in the morning, and we checked in from time to time to add something to the drunken orgy.

One time, we had Janeane Garafalo and Ann Coulter in a mud wrestling match.

We played with fan fiction, including a group story I started after Janeane snapped on her Air America talk show. She made Cyndy Sheehan cry on air after she called her a wimp for not fire bombing Bush’s ranch house. Several others took the story in different directions.

One of my e friends there became a Kathy Griffin fan because he believed she had a better business plan, so three of us began posting there too. As one of migrants noted they were more shallow than Janeane’s posters and less tolerant.

Thanks to me several people ventured over to Janeane’s message board, but they left because it was less active and more boring. I was in the thick of a real war at Kathy’s site, and about eight of us left to start our own private message board. They are mostly liberal, except for one. I talked her into visiting this message board, and she came on Snarkey Friday. She decided you all were too extreme for her.

Again, we know each other well enough to transcend politics. I left Janeane’s message board because of her comments about TEA Party demonstrators and because my eyes were bothering me. I don’t use the computer as I did.

That early message board spoiled me. I thought they were all like it, but it was one of a kind. We like and respect each other after our early wars.

My father’s family lived in North Carolina for ten years. Their definition of white trash is of nerdowells. People who live closer to the fringes of society. They may commit petty crimes and tend to be lazy.

Red necks are hard working people like Larry the Cable Guy who was raised in Nebraska. They are good ol boys who like to drink and have fun. They may be intolerant of other’s views and a little uncouth. Glenn Beck is ignorant of rural America’s cultural mores and he is not white trash or a red neck. The Christmas Sweater describes the hard working family he came from.

If I were forced to pick between white trash and red neck, I would classify Sarah Palin as a red neck. Glenn Beck may have some red neck attitudes, but he is too citified to fit my definition.

The Janeane and Kathy message boards have rules and definitions. They define a troll as someone who invades a message board for the purpose of disrupting it. That does not include a person with opinions contrary to the group. It means people with bad manners.

I think I am still one of the moderators of the forum. Once, I was the administrator, but that is a long story, and I have taken too much space as it is.

Well, well, well. It has been so long since Colorful was here, thumping away up in the hell-fire-and-brimstone pulpit, I had forgotten all about him/her/whatever.

Colorful must be ever so disappointed that M&H bloggers haven’t made a frantic conversion stampede up the aisle in the direction of his/her/whatever’s point of view.

But Colorful, any time you are lonely and afraid again and feel the need to hear the figurative sound of your own voice, come on back. You are harmless enough. There is plenty of tea and pie for everyone here.

Discussions about the ethical, or absence of, activities by public officials weigh heavy on the Hobbit. For the curious, one with a sense of humor tried to do something about that, and perhaps he inspired a movement (play on words). Perhaps the Hobbit will bring a smile to those who visit this eve, as appreciation for kind words above.

Amen Poolman for your response to Colorful’s very anti-Christian display. God created diversity in mere mortals. We all fail. The better of us get up, dust ourselves off and get right back in the game with the hope of doing better. You can’t expect more than that of anyone.

We all are endowed with certain ‘gifts’ by God. Sometimes those ‘gifts’ are our differences. It’s one of the ways we can challenge our minds, our thoughts and our beliefs. There is something to be learned from everyone, even your enemies, real or perceived.

God, and Christ were all about love, forgiveness and charity. I don’t think Colorful is exhibiting any of these traits and fails miserably at “judge not….”

Live each day with grace… exhibit it rather than criticism of those different from you….. and live each day with gratitude that you’ve had the opportunity.

(I left out “the” in the URL) Sorry sorry sorry. I wonder if this is caused by nerd underload?

OT: went to beach today. Left camera at home. So of course a blue whale (that’s what the ranger thinks it was as it’s too late in the season for the Northern Right Whale migration) shows up, several pods of dolphins, a couple of flying fish. . .sigh. but it was a nice unwind for a couple of hours. . .

Being born in certain economic, racial and possibly geographic and religious circumstances doesn’t make you white trash. Self made people who came up from nothing aren’t necessarily white trash – in fact, they’re rarely white trash.

White trash indicates willful and self-congratulating (even boastful) ignorance, sloth, rudeness,use self-absorption, willingness to shout and even violence to get one’s way, and a general sense of self-entitled victimhood. You achieve ‘white trash’. If it weren’t for the word ‘white’, I’d say it even cuts across racial lines. Certainly there are many rich people who qualify, and a whole lot of Northerners. I’ve even known a couple of white trash pagans. It seems to be a regrettable sub-set of the human race. A small minority but, my goodness, they’re loud.

Speaking of minorities, I’m having trouble explaining trolls to my husband. It would be easier if I understood it myself.

So – there are people who check this blog (and other blogs) daily. When they find a new post, they blog in with “Damn, you’re back, I thought you’d gone away”. Hunh? Then what are you doing spending so much time checking in? You mean to tell me you weren’t hoping to find something? G’wan – pull the other one.

And of course the crowd who type nothing but long strings of abuse – this would be the types who wouldn’t dare to open their traps if it might get them verbal abuse or a poke in the nose right back. Weenie, much?

What I REALLY didn’t like about Sarah Palin, and the Republican/Conservative party for at least the last 8 years was their divisive nature. It wasn’t about values even though that’s what they claimed it to be. It sure seemed like it was about color, religion, and party party party. They forgot about country.

James, I cannot believe you used to be a part of the Janeane Garofalo blog. That is pretty far far left. Were you tarred and feathered or did you do some slinging?

“…Glen Beck referred to himself as “White trash” and argued that there are many “white trash families” in America and Sarah Palin should be vice president because she represents those “White trash” family values…

“Defining white trash…is usually combined with belonging to some obscure sect of Protestantism that tells them that it doesn’t matter if they do all these things, because they are the elect of God.”

Oh I see Colorful found the bread crumbs and snuck back onto the porch. How cute. But Colorful shouldn’t you be up in arms for the Holy Mother of the USA, Sarah Palin? Aren’t you just soooo upset as she is about the desecration of her iconic child???

“Michael Jackson was a pedofile. Obama is a liar and a terrorist. Farah Fawcett was a whore. It saddens me how we all worship evil in this world. I am still praying for all of you.

May God have mercy on your souls. You will need it especially if you keep following these women who have proven their willingness to help Satan spread his lies.”

I debated with myself whether even to pay this comment from Colorful the homage of even responding to it, but a few things need to be cleared up here.

Even though in the court of public opinion, Michael Jackson may have been considered guilty, I am a proud American and still believe very strongly in one of our most precious tenants, innocent until proven guilty. Michael Jackson was never proven guilty. We trust the judicial system to get it right enough to kill someone who is convicted of a capital crime, and death is pretty permanent. if we trust the judicial system enough to get it right in those cases, I see no reason why we shouldn’t trust the judicial system to have gotten in right in Michael Jackson’s case. If our judicial system is really THAT flawed, then perhaps we should reconsider killing people as a result.

Even if he was in fact guilty, he was a human being who brought a great deal of joy and magic and happiness to millions and he is mourned for the loss of his talent and what might have been and the sad, damaged life he led. I pray for any possible victims he might have left, I hate the sin but love the sinner as Jesus says we are to do, and pray for the soul of someone whom God touched on the shoulder with such a great gift to move and affect and mesmorize and entertain people and brighten their lives. And I mourn the entertainer who gave me so many years of joy and magic and amazement, and pray for mercy on the the soul of the victimizer, for the sake of the victim he himself once was.

As for President Obama, I think you’re confused. To my knowledge, he has never been exposed as a liar. And he is not a terrorist. He has never caused or threatened violence to force powers that be to bend to his will. The guy who murdered Dr. George Tiller is a terrorist. The guy who shot up the Holocaust Museum in Washington and killed that security guard was a terrorist. Perhaps you need to re-read the definition of a terrorist.

To my knowledge, Farrah Fawcett never slept with men for money. She was married for several years, that marriage went south like so many do, and she chose not to marry again, and had a long relationship with Ryan O’Neal. I fail to see how this constitutes being a “whore.” Again, I think you need to drag out your Webster. Mary Magdalene was a whore in the true sense, and she was one of Jesus’ best friends. Perhaps you should consider paying more than just lip service to Christianity and not just regurgitate the words of Jesus, but actually try to understand them and take them to heart.

But I agree that it is sickening how many people worship evil. Just look at how many people are still listening to and who still like Dick Cheney, the closest thing to evil here on earth I think any of us will ever see.

I hope I can stop myself from future attempts to have a battle of wills with such a pitifully unarmed person, but sometimes it’s just too hard to resist.

Glad my hobbit friend Frodo found these two gals! Lots of backlash here in South Carolina against the governor. Folks aren’t too happy about being lied to. (Although, for the life of me, why they never saw through Bush & Cheney is a mystery.) Enjoyed the posts and all the comments! BJ

Colorful reminds me of Jimmy Swaggert and Ted Haggerd and Jim Bakker. He/she is so incredibly willing to condemn other people, to say they are going to hell, blah blah. BUT, if this blog is so evil and degenerate, what the hell is he/she doing constantly reading it? Seriously? The fact is, you moron, that you are a complete fraud. If the blog offends you, steer clear of it. All you do is make me (and I might guess others) want to steer as clear as humanly possible from your version of God. So hey–guess what–YOU are driving people away from God? Happy?

I respect your opinion, however I still call it like I see it. Again, I don’t know SP personally. I can only go by the record.

And I believe you are confusing white trash with redneck. Especially if you quote Hank Williams jr.

From Wikipedia: ‘”White trash” should be differentiated from the term redneck, as each has a unique historical etymology and context in modern usage with the latter generally a bit more socially acceptable.”

I had to laugh out loud when I read that Sanford was “in love”. Although forbidden fruit does have sweet juice, he’s old enough to know that good sex does NOT equal love. I think a lot of people confuse the two.

My best friend in this wide, beautiful world is 20 years my senior. She once shared with me, “I think Tina Turner is a frickin’ prophetess. She said, ‘What’s love got to do with it’.” I am 3gr8, never married, and the mother of a beautiful little girl. From what I’ve seen, I agree with my best friend.

Thanks, Honolulu Sally. “It” has little to do with a person’s beliefs, in my opinion. It is an undefinable, (non sexual too), attraction which people feel when they are with someone who displays personal magnetism. I considered voting for Hillary had she been nominated, but, in my opinion, she doesn’t have the magnetism of her husband Bill who like Al Sharpton also has “it.” I’ve heard her speak.

Senator John Kerry joked that an Alaskan governor should have disappeared instead of Sanford. Why would he care if she is a non- entity stuck in Alaska? Maybe he thinks she has “it.” I’m just speculating.

It is foolish to vote for someone on the basis of personal magnetism and charisma. You could get Hitler.

“White trash” is a negative stereotype. It condemns an entire culture with the weakness of some. Calling Sarah Palin “white trash” implies she is too ignorant to be taken seriously. As David Siness’s character said in Stephen King’s “The Stand”, “country don’t mean stupid.”

If Palin is white trash, so is Bill Clinton. I live in a rural area and know relatively self -made people like them who have emerged from modest economic and cultural circumstances. For example, our childrens’ grade school teacher grew up with little. She put herself through college and returned to teach in the school she had attended. She ran a trap line all winter to get enough fur for a coat. Our son’s boss in California said they especially like applicants from Heartland rural areas because they have good work ethics.

“We came from the West Virginia coalmines
And the Rocky Mountains and the western skies
And we can skin a buck; we can run a trap-line
And a country boy can survive

Because you can’t starve us out
And you can’ t make us run
Cause one-of- ‘em old boys raisin ole shotgun
And we say grace and we say Ma’am
And if you ain’t into that we don’t give a damn.”

Hank Williams Jr.

I see some of my relatives, neighbors, Sarah Palin and to a lessor degree Bill Clinton in that song. None of them is white trash in spite of rough edges.

Why men and not women? I think it’s just a law-of-averages thing: as many women as men fool around, but there are so few of them in positions of power that, statistically, they don’t exist. As more women gain prominence, we’ll begin to see them take similar falls from grace.

Many give Christianity a bad name. Many give all religions a bad name. I even get upset at those with the fish symbol on their vehicles that cut me off on the freeway.

If you are gonna wear the badge, be on your best behavior people. Be vigilant. Others are watching. If your gonna screw around, leave my God out of it. Please. It is between you and Him. He is not going to change the rules for you or me. Just follow them and when you screw up, try better next time. Really. I mean it.

Awww, gives James a break. He’s got the right to think Sarah Palin has “it”. Did you see the spot when Craig Ferguson was made an “honorary Alaskan citizen” via video by S. Palin? He said she made him feel horny. She does have some of “it”, LOTS of people have “it”.

Brittany Spears had “it” before, but not now. “It” is all in the pants of the beholder.

The bible can be quoted to justify almost anything. The golden rule is found in the bible and is basically the greatest commandment after love God with all your heart and soul and mind.

It is funny that Mark Sanford would use David as an example, and goes to show that he is not fully aware of the entire life of David. The bible says that David had a heart for God, but his life was far from glorious. He lied, cheated, committed murder, adultery, slaughtered men women and children, killed the messengers, had many wives and concubines. He was exiled and on the run much of his life. His son tried to kill him and took over his kingdom before he was brought down and then David grieved for him and wished himself dead instead, insulting his entire army. He was not allowed to build the temple for God because of his lifestyle, though he was happy to gather much of the materials to go toward its construction. He was a warrior and not a peacemaker. Just not a good choice, IMO, for a life example.

Michael Jackson was a gifted individual with many problems. A lot stemmed from his own family. He is not in this world any longer, and so has a better insight into the supernatural than you or I. Obama is our president. Although he is human and therefore a sinner, he is sincere in his desire to help our nation. If you say terrorist, you are a fan of the real liars at Fox news and have also drank the koolaid. Farrah was also gifted and blessed with good looks and is more aware of that other realm now also. But go ahead and cast that stone, if you are without sin.

The deed to this world is presently held by Satan, but we are not all worshippers of him. You seem to be ready to dole out judgment. I trust that means you have put behind all the sin in your life? Maybe you have special insight giving you the ability to separate the sheep from the wolves. I pray for you also Colorful. Thank you for your prayers. May His will be done.

I can’t believe Sanford had the nerve to quote the Bible when stating he would not resign. My God these people are such hypocrites using the bible when it is convenient and ignoring it when it is not. As far as I am concerned the jury is still out on how good or bad Christianity and the Bible has been for our civilization. Seems to me that the Golden Rule might have been enough and we had that BC.

White Trash to the bone. Right place. Right time. Will be a flash in the pan.

Stupid is as stupid does. The Republicans were hungry for anything new, anything other than McCain who they hated. She might have been “it” for the moment but she certainly doesn’t have “it” for keeps. It was given to her by mistake and will soon be taken back.

Lilly said at 5:38 AM “I come from the school that says once a cheater always a cheater.”

I disagree. My wife and I have been married 32 years and have lived together for 34. There was infidelity in our first years of marriage by both of us and we survived it and there is no desire for either of us to cheat now. We are best friends. Not that the attraction to others isn’t there. You just get to a point where you address it honestly and avoid those areas of weakness.

I agree with what Lori posted 7:38 AM, “…it all boils down to one thing… Commitment…”

Jsri also said at 11am, “It is the commitment that is the key element.”

Frodo, I enjoyed your posts on your blog. I enjoy the sarcasm and insight. Thanks.

James says Palin has “it”. I still disagree. Must be seeing her through rose-colored glasses, or maybe it’s the vision thing that you are dealing with. I just see white trash. I think most of us here agree. No “it”, IMHO. Now Farrah Fawcett definitely had “it”. Obama definitely has “it”, and Michael Jackson. But I would say Hillary has “it”. I think that she did not always have “it”, but grew into “it”.

I still think Sanford has become a blubbering idiot. There is talk that he found “love” and not just a sex partner. Some see this as more acceptable. But to miss father’s day with his family? WTF…BS! I hope they get rid of him as governor. Mostly because of the hypocrisy thing. And for using the state funds to take his trips. I would like to see his wife take his job. Of course she has the 4 boys to raise…

But before we cast the first stone…from God’s perspective, if we even contemplate it, we sin the same as if we did the act. So how many of us should judge?

Not sure about the Colon Ladies, but what’s wrong with recipes and poodles? I love ‘em both. Was it really better having the Bible verses decorating the Pentagon briefings? At least recipes are useful.

It’s too hot to really cook today. We had BLTs with lettuce out of the garden, and blueberries with plain yogurt for dessert. Washed down with cold bitter beer. Supposed to storm soon – maybe the heat will break then.

Just as soon as I get through expounding on how good all this togetherness can be, I come across an article in the latest Time magazine that shows how devastating it can be for your waistline. And it doesn’t make any difference whether you are married or simply living together, within a year of the initial cohabitation the pounds start appearing.

Condolences and congratulations to all those who survived their cheater spouses. It is indeed a blessing to have a good spouse with whom trust and respect are the norm.

Sanford’s story reminds me of the movie “Spanglish”. It was about a successful American and a beautiful Mexican (illegal) immigrant, with a better, although bittersweet result. Sanford let his pecker rather than his pastor rule his pants.

My celebrity crush was on Paul Newman. Those blue eyes, slow smile, and goodness of soul got me as he rode into the sunset with the Sunshine Kid. Speaking of which, Robert Redford was a close second.

Well worth the wait Margaret and Helen! I hadn’t laughed so hard in a long time. Great post! I agree with you, these holier than thou politician are falling like flies because they seem to think with their lower end. But then, men in general, have to feed their ego first, they are almost always number one in their own mind. The aging male is worse than the younger male actually, when it comes to feeding that ego, may it be related to cheating, power grabbing, using money to hang on to his idea of masculinity, by consorting with younger women while the aging wife is home tending to the children. Women tend to be concerned about their children and other people’s children as well. They can do a lot with little and sure would be better at managing resourses for the good of all.

It is only the women who are trying to imitate the male idea of what a politician should be that would leave their empathetic side behind, for the sake of expediency and power. Some of these women are listed in other posts on this blog. However, I hope those are few and far between. Therefore, I do believe like Helen that the world would be a better place with Janes in power.

Helen I so empathize with you. I was in Austin last week, it was really hot and miserable. I guess it is still the same. I like to walk and it was impossible to do so until sundown, even then, it was just so muggy most of the time.

So many fine comments in response to this post as usual. Greytdog, I so loved your response to the troll, windex to polish a halo? Priceless!

I’m a day late reading news, so I didn’t read about Sanford until today. FIRST THING I thought of was M&H and the wedgies’ responses. (You did not fail me.)

Here’s how I see it:

Infidelity + “Love” = Despicable
Infidelity + “blowjob” = Diversion

I just can’t put Clinton’s indiscretion in the same pot with Sanford’s. But that’s just me. And by the way, I had a cheater husband too. I’d’ve been fine with a blowjob excuse. Maybe I’m like Hillary. What killed my marriage was the “love” addition to the infidelity (my husband towards his mistress) . Oh, and that “love”?… it lasted about 2 months after our divorce.

BoobTube and JuneauJoe, I agree with you both. And, Palin is a poor excuse for a human being, not to mention a woman. She is the reason so many of us got riled up when John McCain foisted her on the rest of us with the intention of garnering our votes because she has a vagina. I haven’t taken my eyes off her since because I do not take lightly her religious persuasion…

greytdog, I have tried the brownies, and they are delicious. Since I eat beans all the time, I don’t seem to have the delicate issue of which you speak. I imagine, though, that those susceptible could have problems. Well worth it, IMHO. And, thank you for the compliment on my poodle. Yes, he is one incredibly wonderful, intelligent standard. And, your avatar, whom I, too, find delightful?

Seems to me Helen likes to get ideas on the table and let it go. Hypocrites are easy – especially political fools like Sanford.

GWood: Sanford voted to impeach Clinton for a blowjob – remember. Sanford also votes consistantly against Gay Issues including, marriage of two who are in love. He sets a sterling example of how love should work. I think he has a child or two or four.

Women in power: Not Palin: She would start a war, because her God (and Witch Doctor Muthee) are tough and they tell her to bomb.

Women in power should be tried though – couldn’t do any worse than Bush and his idiot friends.

You know. Helen never said it would be better or worse if women were in power. She just said she wished for it and then gave some common sense examples of how women might make a better decision around certain issues than men have done so far. I mean come on. Health Insurance Companies will cover Viagra but not Birth Control??? How short sighted, male dominated thinking is that? And why do Corporate Executives get huge ass bonuses when the employees who made them so successful continue to struggle to make ends meet?

I am on Helen’s bandwagon. Out with the Dicks. In with the Janes!!!!!!

gwood said: “I have seen enough of women in search of power thanks. We would be no better and no worse off with women in charge.”

Until we have a full-scale, many-century experiment with the majority of power in the U. S. (and the world) being in the hands of women, we won’t know this for sure; we can only speculate based on anecdotal evidence.

gwood said: “Arguably we might be worse off because the government websites would be totally replete with pictures of obnoxious looking poodles, recipes, and Colon Ladies.”

I suppose the 3rd party doesn’t get as much angry attention because although they are also in the wrong, they aren’t the one who broke their vows. I know when my 1st husband cheated, I was angry at his honey but she had made no promises to me, whereas he had. I filed for divorce the very next day. Good riddance!

I have seen enough of women in search of power thanks. We would be no better and no worse off with women in charge. Jazus, have you missed Nancy Pelosi and that horrid Bachmann woman from wherever. Yuk, a politician is a politician, Johnson or Janeson.
Arguably we might be worse off because the government websites would be totally replete with pictures of obnoxious looking poodles, recipes, and Colon Ladies.
I can only hope you were being sarcastic to suggest that so much would be so better merely by putting women up front.

elaine said: “Jenny Sanford is handling her husband’s despicable infidelity in so much more of a feminist way than Hillary Clinton handled her husband’s. Hillary did the usual look-the-other-way-and-ignore-it routine while declaring herself a feminist. She is and was a complete farce.”

From the tone of your comment, I can only gather that one of these women handled her husband’s infidelity in accordance with “Elaine’s Law: How to Handle the Infidelity of a Husband.” None of us knows the type of relationship Hillary has with Bill or Jenny with Mark. What I do know is how they handle infidelity is their business and choice.

This morning, I was briefed by officials from the Department of Defense regarding the threat of a North Korean missile test in the coming weeks. Based on the information I received about the Department’s readiness and the Administration’s attention to this matter, I am confident that we are prepared to defend against any North Korean missile should it be directed toward Hawaii.

For the latest news from my office, please visit my website which is updated daily. And please know that I always appreciate hearing your concerns and comments regarding the issues that face our state and our nation. Please contact me by clicking here.

Elaine, with all due respect, the only individuals currently serving in an elected office who have admitted to adultery are the Republicans named by Frodo. Mr. Clinton is no longer in office, and Senator Kennedy, whom Frodo assumes you reference, has, to the best of Frodo’s knowledge, never made such a public admission of such behavior.

Margaret and Helen deserve comments which reflect the facts and not the apoplectic harangue of a biased howler monkey. Do better next time, or bring your lunch cause you’ll be there all day fighting with Frodo.

Okay we need to understand something here, please. Whenever anyone says something like “I’m about to make brownies, or pie, or cookies, or cake, or grill, or. . .” would you please post the recipe?? I mean. . .c’mon!!! Have some tea, some lemonade, and then share the recipe. . .share that wealth folks!! :) Thanks. I really mean it.

you wrote: “It’s our experience that there are many, many more such relationships floating around without fanfare.”
I hope I didn’t imply that our way was the only way to go. I have known many arrangements in and out of marriage that were wildly successful. including mixed ethnicities, mixed sexes and same sexes. It is the commitment that is the key element. One of my former colleagues had 2 marriages. Two disasters. Then he remarried a lady who also had two marriages. Bingo. They have fit together like a hand and glove for the past 20 years. It just took them a little longer.

BTW, my crush was Peggy Fleming, intelligence, beauty and grace all in one package. But that’s our secret.

Jo Atlanta: 6:23 (26th)

I understand the satisfaction index of married women in the the poll results that you described. Just look at who gets the short end of the stick when things unravel.

chloe on June 26, at 7:56 AM

Glad to see that the shotgun worked. One arrangement that often gets bad press is that of living together before marriage. Our son and daughter-in-law lived together for three years before taking the plunge. I guess things got sorted out pretty well because they are now in their 23rd year and are as solid as a rock. The 2 grandkids are a blast.

It all comes down to those damned words, trust and commitment. But it takes 2 to make it work.

I’m outta here. We’ve got guests from TX on the way and I’m about to put together a batch of brownies (one of my lesser talents).

Governor Sanford, like millions of other men, suffer from midlife crisis issues. As a recovering survivor myself, I can attest that a person’s morals has nothing to do with their political affiliation or social standing.

When there is a lack of deep, honest communication at home, men tend to run away sometimes literally!

It is always best to have difficult conversations before you do dumb things. The pain may still be there, but it is a lot less embarrassing.

I can only hope the geniuses at Cambridge know what they’re talking about:

~

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

My, my, my. Yes, those Republicans have stepped in it again. They’re making a virtue of folly. Still, I do hope the iced tea makes a difference. A few hours in the garden will do wonders for one’s disposition.

Honolulu Sally, thanks for correcting me and giving jsri his due, that was a fine statement he made. I blame my poor multitasking skills, trying to work while do more important things, such as read M&H. My apologies jsri and again…bravo.

Micheal Jackson…how unfortunate his last decade was. Whether he was guilty of the things he was accused of, I don’t know. He was extremely gifted and I remember spending hours watching MTV hoping they would show Thriller. And Farrah, I was a teen during the height of her popularity, I admit to sporting a Farrah-do thru high school.

My husband and I have been together 14 years, married 2.5 of them (Santa brought me a shotgun one Xmas!). I am his 3rd wife and he’s my 2nd husband. I agree with Jo Atlanta that failures help make us who we are. We learned from our previous failed marriages and are determined not to make those mistakes again. So far, so good! A few of my girlfriends worry about their husbands cheating, even though there have been no signs of infidelity. Good ol’ insecurity. Their lack of trust causes strife in their relationships and makes them nutty from the constant paranoia. I’ve never seen the point in worrying about something that hasn’t even happened, such a waste of time.

too many cat lovers here for “Faux Mews”, they’ll rip us apart, theeth and claws and all, and spit furrballs all over us, and I couldn’t even blame them, cats ARE sentinent beings, as opposed to people working for FOX…..;-P

For the moment I think Chloe’s got the pot….
(My ribs still hurt when I think of it…..)

But seriously I DO think it needs a new, more propper name, phonetically “Fox Screws”… would be appropriate, but with all this politness here, I think this one doesn’t get a chance either…..

My thoughts on marriage and infidelity are not nearly as sophisticated as many of yours.

I married my hs sweetheart 28 years ago after a 7 year courtship.

I listen to the discussions about “how to keep your love life alive”, read all the articles about why men cheat.. Hold the hands of my friends who find themselves in the middle of a divorce. And no matter what the circulstance, how educated or not the parties are, what gender or sexual preference, who lost interest or grew apart from whom, it all boils down to one thing… Commitment… forever.. No I repeat NO relationship survives a lifetime without it… No matter it being a mother-father/child, sibling, friend, …. doesn’t matter… The ONLY thing that makes a relationship last a life time is a promise… a commitment… a commitment that says no matter what, i will be with you forever… period…

I have no sympathy Sanborn. I do have sympathy for his wife and children and hope that she kicks him to the curb. As bad as it will be for the kids – the damage has been done. I’ll be disappointed if she takes him back.

The guy I saw making that “confession” was seriously melting down. I expect he will resign, as he should. If he doesn’t, I’m good with investigation and impeachment if anything illegal is found. No making amends or restitution – just out.

It’s been pointed out already that Clinton was not impeached for fooling around, and I’m of the mind that the record of the grounds for impeachment is not a merely a technicality. I see it as a fact. Whether he should have been investigated in the first place is another story.

I like Clinton, but I don’t see a big difference in the way these two assholes behaved. Comparing their infidelity is confusing and somewhat meaningless to me. They did what they did, and it was wrong. I also don’t think there’s much difference in the way some factions of the two parties politicize these all too familiar situations.

I’m just beginning to wrap my head around this hypocrisy argument that’s used every time a Christian or Republican falls. I get it- but only sort of.

The stumbling block for me in joyfully mocking and condemning this guy and others like him is that I think some people see infidelity and homosexuality in the same way – as “sins.” It’s the way they interpret God’s frame of mind. Of course it’s impossible to even comprehend God’s frame of mind, assuming you believe in Him in the first place.

Anyway, these guys aren’t saying that adultery is right and should be protected or sanctioned in any way. When they fall – they confess it and try and turn from it. Of course they think that everyone should do as they do and “turn from it.” We all think everyone else should do as we say. That activity is not exclusive to Republicans.

I expect that one day all people will more fully understand the separation of church and state. I can’t fault people too much for not understanding everything as clearly as some other people think they do. I’m gay and I don’t understand that all too well. It just is. And I’m cool with it.

Jo Atlanta, I’ve read the same polls. Of course there are obvious exceptions, but I agree with you.

My wife and I courted for five years, and because of the service, we did not see each other for nearly two years. Two months after our wedding, the Air Force sent me away. Four months later, we were together again thousands of miles from our friends and family. We supported each other.

My wife and I are both independent, and we do nicely when we are not working together. I do think our enforced separations made us appreciate how empty our lives would be if we were apart. Unchained Melody describes how it was for us.

HoneyJoRumples, Clintons’ lies were ruled purgery, and also obstruction of justice in the Paula Moore law suit, if I remember correctly. Had we done what he did, we would have served time. Clinton’s law license was taken away too. I’m relying on memory because I am resting my eyes. I believe impeachment and aquital were appropriate punishments for Clinton. He did not deserve to be thrown out, but he deserved punishment meaningful to him.

I’m beginning to think Gov. Sanford ought to resign or face impeachment following an investigation. His dilliance didn’t break any laws. However, he may have broken a law if he abandoned his state without making arrangements with the government for his absence. We still don’t know if he used any tax money for his trip, etc.

Poolman, my opinion of Sarah Palin or the President is irrelevant to my view point. Here is how I see the similarity between Palin and Obama. Ed McMann, Farah Fawcet, and Michael Jackson died this week. They were all cultural icons in their way, but teenagers owned posters of only two. “It” belonged to both Fawcet and Jackson. Obama and Palin also have “it.” Mitt Romney, Joe Biden, Harry Reid, John McCain, Nancy Pelosi, and most other politicians, while talented and successful do not have “it” as Obama and Palin do.

My wife owns “it” also and has since the first day we met when we were teenagers. We waited 11 years before having children because we didn’t want to spoil the honeymoon. We met a poster on the Janeane Garafalo forum in California. The first thing he said when we saw each other was “I can tell you two are soul mates.”

Thanks to Choloe who paid me a compliment by mistaking my post for Jsri’s, and for Honolulu Sally’s nice words. Jsri is a classy man.

jsri: “the loss of personal trust between husband and wife that is so hard to comprehend and impossible to reconcile.”

This is one of the better comments I have read here. The truth is, nothing outside an individual marriage can damage a marriage, or indeed, the institution of marriage. We can manage just fine on our own. As mentioned elsewhere, it is scarey when you see teens getting married, knowing they have so much maturing yet to do, and that in all likelihood, they will grow away from one another.

The thing about men is they are hardwired with sexual drive. It is something that certainly can be controlled. But it is lots easier if a man has a commitment to one person – a soulmate. A big part of that is the absolute trust in that other person. It is just impossible to explain that trust to a teen or young adult. I often think first marriages are almost doomed to failure. It is not all bad because failures help make us who we are.

I wonder how many here have seen the study about marriage happiness? The happiest in the study were single women, followed by married men, and at the end were married women. Now, remember that statistics can be skewed to show what you want. But I think the biological evidence bears this out.

@ Poolman – well it is my view that they should stand back and let their partners take the heat because how are they protecting their family per se? It just looks lame and staged. Better to lay low and none fo this if he is sorry I will take him back. Um, that is sad and they do not deserve that treatment. I come from the school that says once a cheater always a cheater. I know, just call me cynical.

I check every day to see if there is a new post and when there is….it’s like Christmas came early! I so needed a belly laugh today and I sure got one. Actually, reading the comments, I’ve laughed non-stop.

I’m so tired of the pedestal Repukes put themselves on. Don’t they realize when they do it, they will just fall harder?

Sophronia wrote: “Really, his love affair, if not involving breach of his oath of office, dishonest misappropriation, is not illegal.”

Neither was Clinton’s dalliane with Monica but that didn’t stop you Reps from impeaching him. Ok, technically he was impeached because he lied under oath about it, but the fact that he was being questioned about it at all raises the point – Sanford attempted to bring down Clinton over something that Sanford is now guilty of, even worse in my view. It’s not that it’s illegal, it’s that his actions break the trust of the public and his family. He didn’t break a law, but he did break trust, and his wedding vows, putting this other woman above his own wife and above his own children on Father’s Day. 10 times worse than anything Clinton did and very unforgiveable. this guy is narcissistic, untrustworthy and grossly irresponsible and certainly not worthy to run for the Presidency.

Yes, indeed…*bum. bum, bum.* Another one bites the dust.

What a sad and freaky week. This Sanford mess, Ed McMahon and now Farrah and Michael. Wheeewww. Where are we going, and why are we in this handbasket?

Lilly, I would not go as far as to call the wives morons. I think the wives do what they must to protect the family. Especially with children in the mix.

It changes the dynamic of the relationship. Most spouses are in “damage control” mode. They do not want to air their grievances in public. The spouses are the ones who have been let down the most. It is something that is never forgotten. It really rocks the core. There has to be trust and respect in a marriage. When that is compromised, it is very hard, if ever, to regain. And when it is aired in public as with our leaders, the spouses have to endure the ridicule, gossip, and judgment everywhere they go. Even on blogs with people calling them morons and such.

There are exceptions, as always. And it does happen in regard some women in public. The example earlier in this post from TBNTJudy regarding Helen Chenoweth, for example. There is a similarity drawn between her and Sarah Palin in the link posted by greytdog at 8:06 PM. James might find that link that interesting, though I don’t think it will sway his opinion of SP.

Walking in the woods he sure was, and couldnt see the trees for the fecking forrest. Why are these politicians sex lives such a big deal. And worse their wives are morans as well. They publicly forgive them again and again.

jsri, your’s was a loving tribute to your wife. It is a fine recipe for a lasting marriage. It’s our experience that there are many, many more such relationships floating around without fanfare.

Fidelity in marriage has never been an issue in our long marriage either. Early on we both were either too busy or broke to even think about it. I do confess that I was madly in love for many years with James Garner. But he didn’t know I existed – literally – and didn’t reciprocate. That was OK. My husband had his Charo, the “Cutchie-cutchie Girl.”

By the time we reached financial security and had some leisure time, we had grown too old and too comfy together. So here we are.

By the same token, we know plenty of couples whose previous marriages failed but finally found lasting happiness with others. Nothing wrong with that either.

Who among us has the maturity and insight to know what the hell we are getting ourselves into in our 20’s? I wince when I hear of kids in their late teens getting married. They can’t possibly have a clue. They just haven’t lived long enough.

I thought the Sanford thing might get a rise out of you two. It did and so succinctly eloquent again. You never fail!!!

Personally, I couldn’t possibly care less who sleeps with whom or when. More to the point, who STAYS AWAKE in bed with whom or when. It’s about the political/morality speechifying as to what everybody else should or shouldn’t do and then getting caught with their knickers down themselves. That’s so absurd.

This is a sad day. First Farrah Faucett and then Michael Jackson. Poor Farrah had been suffering for a long time. Michael Jackson’s death is shockingly sudden. He was a multi-talented performer but I think his genius was in choreography. He single handedly changed the genre around the world. I didn’t realize until today that he wrote, “We Are the World.” My heart goes out to his large extended family and to Ryan O’Neal also.

Is there something special about a Republican tallywacker that it requires so much attention? …if I have to listen to one more hypocritical apology from a holier than thou politician too stupid to keep his indiscretions secret…

Dead on.

At a certain level of power, and living in some version of a bubble, it’s easy to feel invulnerable. Easy to dictate morality for the masses, and do whatever you feel like for yourself. Easy to restrict access to abortion and birth control, knowing you and yours can just have one of those “Swiss ski trips”. After all, the people need to be controlled – not you.

I think that what a person truly is comes out whenever they think there can be no consequences.

Listening to public radio, I heard a discussion with a specialist who works in “Damage Control” for various entities. (Where do these specialties come from? I don’t remember that major in college. Of course, times were different then). He was commenting on how badly the press conference was handled, and wound up with “When you’re an ego-driven personality, you tend to think that every problem can be solved with ‘more of moi'”. Nearly drove off the road laughing, but it’s true.

I’m delighted that Mrs. Sanford isn’t doing the humiliating Stand By Your Man act. However, her press release, stating that Bonzo might get back as long as he “showed humility and true repentance’ gave me a bit of a chill. Maybe it sounds worse than she meant it, but I wouldn’t count on her ever letting this go, no matter what.

All of the sanctimonious pontification Sanford’s done throughout his career – I can only expect that he will do the same thing he would demand of any Democratic politician in the same position. Fair’s fair.

BTW, for all of the folks concerned about the hypocrisy evident in a “Christian family-values politician” having a little fun on the side, I’m not sure why you’re surprised. One of Christianity’s most popular selling points is the “sin, be sorry, clean slate” feature.

If you were a big sinner, what religion would you chose? How about one that emphasizes sin (so you get the excitement of being bad) AND promises forgiveness so long as you’re really, really sorry (which anyone who’s ever been a teenager can convince himself he is).

I don’t think anyone ever said the affair was illegal (altho SC does have a law – not enforced – against adultery – I think it ranks with enforcing not letting slaves wander off your property) but they have pointed out the hypocrisy of his moral stance. What may be illegal is that his lover works for a big Argentinian agribusiness that SC Commerce began courting upon his insistence. . . conflict of interest? graft? Add in using taxpayer $$ to foot the bills to Argentina coupled with his refusal of stimulus $$ welllll. . . .he would have fared better if he really had been hiking the AT on Nude day

AGrace You make a couple of excellent points. Most working Joes and Jills would not be able to take off w/out warning for several days from their jobs.

As to whether he is a narcissist, as you and some pundits have suggested, I don’t know. But his press conference was notable for giving out too much info! He did apologize to his wife and various others, but apology? He needed to beg forgiveness! This is one case where an apology is not sufficient.

As to why the reporters did not disclose the emails, I like to think that if he had been tapped for VP candidate, then they might have moved more aggressively to find out if the emails are authentic. I suppose Sanford’s disappearance, and the discovery of his return from Argentina, served as the catalyst for their revelation.

Really, his love affair, if not involving breach of his oath of office, dishonest misappropriation, is not illegal.

My god, ladies, thank you for some common sense on these issues, the first entirely unimportant except to the wife and sons, the second terribly important, but sadly overshadowed. I don’t care who any politician has sex with, as long as it’s consensual and the other parties are adult humans (which should be redundant, but some people don’t quite get that). Why are men so preoccupied with other men’s penises and where they’ve been? Listen here, guys: your penises aren’t that important. Or impressive. Find something else to be concerned about. You know, climate change. North Korea’s threats. The situation in Iran. Health care. The economy.

I see you guys don’t remember Helen Chenoweth, Republican representative from Idaho, who was so viciously vocal about Bill Clinton and his indiscretions. Like so many others, she, too, lived in a glass house. Sadly, women do it, too..

Helen, I have been missing your rapier wit, and Margaret, I love your ripostes.

Just thinking. . .but wonder if we could convince Margaret & Helen to apply for a Netroots Scholarship for next year??? Wouldn’t that be awesome to send our ladies to caucus with the some of the nation’s top libruls???

I love the way you read the news. Even though in my position I’m getting to envy you your Republican politicians. Here in Italy Sanford would pass as an almost saintly character. Prime Minister Berlusconi is embroiled in a scandal that purports that starlets (including at least one under 18 year old) and escorts have flocked to his official and private residencies. And yet our national tv stations mention little if anything about this (there are 7: 3 are his, 3 are state run, therefore are in his power, and the last one is the smallest channel). This means that you might have, amongst other stations, Faux News but at least you can turn to something else. The result is that his personal life raises no eyebrows (in Italy) and his policies, which have brought no perceivable results, aren’t questioned.

Just heard Michael Jackson has been rushed to hospital with cardiac arrest. Reports state he is in pretty bad shape. Hope he makes it. He’s a weirdo but he put out some great music once upon a time. So sad to hear Farrah lost her battle today. May she RIP.

Right on Helen. Worse than the melodrama of the “apology” and Harlequin Romance emails is the response I keep hearing about how we should all be feelin’ sorry for the guy. He’s “obviously troubled”, “in pain”, and deserves our compassion, they say. PULEASE. He’s a narcissist, consumed by hubris, who consciously and willingly behaved badly and is really p—d off that he got caught. Sure, people make mistakes and yes, he is human like the rest of us. But there are consequences, for civilians at least. Try not showing up at YOUR job for a few days and see if over-emoting in front of the cameras preserves your job. What I would like to know is WHY the paper who had the emails many months ago didn’t confront them when they were first rec’d to see if he would deny or authenticate? They claim not to be sure they were authentic and wouldn’t publish until they could be sure. Fine. But why did they not ask him back in Dec.? Can you imagine if McCain/Sanford had won the election??? Two philanderers for the price of one!

And that is what I find so distressing about these situations. Aside from the public trust that has been destroyed, it is the loss of personal trust between husband and wife that is so hard to comprehend and impossible to reconcile.

Well said James! Although I don’t usually agree with you, I enjoy reading your posts.

what should also bother people is that this asshat apologized for hurting her, his constituents, his children and his wife .. in that order … her clearly being his Evita …. and why did he need to go to Argentina to break it off? For a week? Puleeze.

Hey Gov! What goes ’round, comes ’round … I hope all the things you so sanctimoniously said about Clinton comes back to bite you on your cheating ass!

Interesting subject. Easy to get into, tough to get out of because it has so many diversions and side issues. .My wife and I have been married for 56 years and as hard as it is to believe, we’ve never had a serious argument, – about anything. Why? She won’t argue. But we have had a lot of discussions over the years, formal and informal discussions where topics have been pretty much without limits. Do we have disagreements? Sure but never did or do they sink to the level of name-calling or character attacks. She won’t respond and there is nothing more fruitless than arguing with yourself.

When I was in HS I worked with a bunch of characters that thought wife beating was a marital side benefit and cheating was the holy grail. Since this was not common within the reaches of my family I never understood the concept. Then I found pretty much the same mindset while in the service. I had begun to think that cheating probably was an acceptable way of life but then I met my wife in college and found out that it is not.

Though our careers diverged somewhat we never lost focus on why we were married. I admit that I got hit on a good number of times but the temptation was never sufficient to make me lose that focus, drunk or sober. I was not about to sacrifice all we had shared together for a few minutes of sexual pleasure. Do I think she might have been hit on too? I’d be surprised if she had not been. She was a stunningly beautiful young woman and taught in a situation where alpha type males seemed to have all the control. Did I worry? I’d have been a fool not to. Did I trust her? Absolutely.

And that is what I find so distressing about these situations. Aside from the public trust that has been destroyed, it is the loss of personal trust between husband and wife that is so hard to comprehend and impossible to reconcile.

Sorry if this sounds like a life recipe for the lovelost but I have been enormously fortunate and wish most people could have similar experiences regardless of the design of their relationships. I suspect there may be many more than I realize.

Yep, neoconnut, I’m with Chloe. You couldn’t possibly be a Republican, because their values amount to “I got mine; screw the rest of you” and their morals “Do as I say, not as I do.”

Meanwhile, we Dems are just trying to…you know…feed the hungry…shelter the homeless…avoid killing people and destroying lives out of ignorance and hatred. Those principles couldn’t possibly be considered values or morals. Nope. Even though they come straight from every holy book that exists.

Another great post Helen and Margaret! I want to be in your club forever!

cindy and Henrietta, I’ll join your club, too! I told my husband after we had kids, that if he messed around, I would cut off his wiener (this was pre Loretta Bobbit). I gave him his choice of utensil – knife or kitchen shears.

We care about our politicians sex lives because they are the ones preaching abstinence from the pulpit….. the deal is the pulpit obscures what they’re doing below the belt. If you live your life in the public eye, you’d better keep the one-eyed monster at bay!

I just happened to find your blog, and I must say, I thoroughly enjoy it.

I have spent much of my afternoon reading some of your older post to my husband. We both are having quite an interesting afternoon to say the least.

You two are a hoot. Love it. Yes women aren’t as willing to drop their drawers for a quickie like so many men are. And if they do, they (try to) keep it very private.

I can’t remember whose blog suggested their viewers come over to your place to read. I had added you to my google reading list and when ever you post it will show there is a new post. So at almost 73, I can’t remember where I first saw your blog title. Sorry about that. They say the mind is the first thing to go, not so sure about that. Have a terrific week-end.

“Fourth, before this search for a presidential nominee goes any further, I’m thinking it’s time for the Republicans to apologize for putting us through the Clinton impeachment. We seem to have pretty well established that sexual stone-throwing is a dangerous sport.”

Just a few minutes ago on “Talk of The Nation” it was mentioned that when he was Rep. Sanford, the governor voted for three of the four articles of impeachment against Clinton. Maybe he thinks it’s okay because at least HE’S in looooove……..

Oh my cindy. You and I should be friends. Let’s start a campaign where castration is punishement for any politician who votes to ban gay marriage but then cheats on his own wife. They would think twice about that vote.

Sure FGH. We have more important things like gay marriage to worry about. How can anyone with half a brain not see the issue here. He campaigned on Christian Values and Honesty. He is on record as being against gay marriage because it will harm the instituion of marriage. If anyone should burn in hell… well I won’t go there because I don’t believe in hell…

Elaine. You seem to forget the most important point of this post because of your lame red vs. blue approach.

Both parties do it. But one party made this a moral issue. The other party thinks it is a privacy issue.

Cheating on your wife and kids hurts your wife and kids. It means nothing to me unless you misuse your power or pulblic funds in the process.

It’s the hypocriitical aspect of this that should be bothering you. The wife can react however she wants to react. I wonder how you would react with the entire world watching your dirty laundry being aired.

1. The unfaithfulness of a married person to the marriage bed; sexual intercourse by a married man with another than his wife, or voluntary sexual intercourse by a married woman with another than her husband.

OK, my bad for assuming Mrs Sanford was doing the politician’s wife stand by her man routine for his money and power. She did say she would take hime back with conditions. Personally, I wouldn’t take him back for any reason after he snubbed his own kids on Father’s Day to see his girlfriend.

I guess the reason there are the Mark Sanfords and John Ensigns and Larry Craigs of the world is so we can have a laugh at the holier-than-thou hypocrites getting caught with their pants down, literally. Keith Olbermann was reading the emails between Sanford and his paramour last night, and I swear they sounded like something straight out of a romance novel, except for Sanford’s misspelling (“world wind” for whirlwind, “lightening” for lightning). Back in the day (I’m dating myself here), Gary Hart would never have been caught/outed by the media with Donna Rice if he hadn’t taunted them.

This behavior is serious for those involved (adultery, lying, hypocrisy), of course, and the public has an absolute right to know, especially (1) if they don’t practice what they would force on the rest of us (Larry Craig voted for DOMA and regularly voted against the GLBT community), or (2) use the resources of their offices to carry on their affairs (Ensign rewarded his mistress and practically her entire family with campaign and RNC jobs) or (3) are derelict in their public duties (I think disappearing for six days qualifies), but these shenanigans do take the public’s mind off of the horribles of the day.

In addition to John McCain and other neocons clamoring for us to get into a third war, in Iran, and the R’s trying to derail health care reform on behalf of the insurance lobby, Coulter and O’Reilly are at it again. On O’Reilly’s show recently, Coulter said of the assassination of Dr. George Tiller, “I don’t really like to think of it as a murder. It was terminating Tiller in the 203rd trimester.” And to paraphrase you, Helen, she really means it.

Always wondered why some people waste time deciding who is going to burn in hell and who isn’t. I’m pretty confident that God has that under control without our help. Watch over your own soul, sanctimonious Pam. That alone is enough to keep you busy for a lifetime. And here’s one more quote from someone you may be more acquainted with, a reminder that you’re under the same lens are everyone else.”Judge not, lest ye be judged.”

ah, I was hoping you would comment on this and as always, I’m not disappointed. I do think that women might do better, but then we might get someone like the woman in MO who thinks hunger is a good motivator and we don’t need to provide food for poor children. She must have a few screws loose.

I just feel so sorry for Sanford’s kids for having such a selfish father.

Ladies, Frodo has observed,without comment, for many months. He can stand it no longer, since you gals are definitely “Hot, Hot, Hot,” and now you realize it, too.
Note that Senators Vitter, Ensign, Craig and the Goobernator Sanford have all admitted adultery(of one form or another) and yet remain on the public teat. At least the Democratic sleazeballs had enough decency to leave office.

You are nothing but a rude, bitter, little asshat! No harm, no foul? So, you are okay with him using your taxpayer dollars to finance his trips to score a little booty? Oh, my bad, you probably don’t pay taxes. Please, just go away.

Jenny Sanford is handling her husband’s despicable infidelity in so much more of a feminist way than Hillary Clinton handled her husband’s. Hillary did the usual look-the-other-way-and-ignore-it routine while declaring herself a feminist. She is and was a complete farce.

Jenny Sanford, on the other hand, while not waving the feminist banner around, showed true grit and feminist values and refused to accept that sort of treatment. She stood up to her husband’s betrayal, publicly exposed him, insisted on a separation and demanded respect. I am incredibly impressed with her and disgusted, as I always have been, with Hillary Clinton.

The Sanford situation is a tragedy even more so because they have four young sons. Thank goodness they have a tough-as-nails mother.

If women were in charge things would be different , well, not if that cruella deville , cynthia davis (state rep from Mo)had her way. Evidently repug women are not more compassionate and caring than their male counterparts.

So obviously it’s probably best for all if those women running the country were Democrats.

Anyway , your rants are so funny. stay cool & remember you can grow stuff in the winter many of us just grow snowbanks & icicles.

Is it that women in the spotlight have more to lose if they cheat? With men, the tsk-tsk response might be accompanied by “that sly dog, he’s still got it” or “well, he must not be — y’know — “happy” at home (nudge nudge wink wink),” and we talk about the fallen woman who probably lured the upstanding man into her arms.

On the other hand, by the time many women reach any level of power and status, they’re of an age where they’re no longer considered attractive (at least in THIS country), and it would be MOST unseemly for them to dally. I guess if they were to do so, they’d have to be involved with someone who would also have a lot to lose if an affair were discovered. They CERTAINLY wouldn’t be able to get involved with an attractive younger single man, because that would be — y’know — disgusting. She’d have to be a cougar. He’d have to be a gigolo.

“Birth control would be free and Viagra would be priced based on the going rate for a barrel of oil. And by that I mean to say the price would go up and down without making any sense – much like the penis in question.”

“Birth control would be free and Viagra would be priced based on the going rate for a barrel of oil. And by that I mean to say the price would go up and down without making any sense – much like the penis in question.”

I don’t think he’s one of those who wanted to erect the 10 commandments in his capitol building but it’s fun to watch them fall off their high horse to hit the dirt in a whimpering tearful mess. Thanks, Helen, I love your perspective on life.

Faux News did it again, they ran footage of Mark Sanford admitting to his affair on Wednesday with a Chyron identifying him as a D, for Democrat. Of course, they eventually changed his party affiliation back to R. Not the first time this has happened. Anyone, I repeat, Anyone, who believes they have any credibility as a news organization is a fool.

Republicans need to look at the bright side: At least Sanford was drilling (pun intended) a person of the opposite sex AND of legal age of consent. How refreshing for a Republican. But, Helen, you are so right when you wrote, “The only difference is that one party decided to make it a moral issue and the other one rightly thinks it’s a privacy issue.” It’s the hypocrisy, stupid.

Repubs, Dems, and politicians of all other stripes are equally guilty of this particular stupidity. The difference is that Republicans/conservatives/whatever-you-wanna-call-em are the ones building their careers upon their supposed moral superiority and “defense of marriage.”

There are *lots* of reasons why it’s been men (so far) who have been caught in sexual scandals and not women and it has nothing to do with women not having or wanting sex. It’s social conditioning, IMO. Women are taught to see power (which is sometimes coupled with wealth and sometimes not) as equaling security and are also taught that what they have to offer is sex. Men are taught to gather power (and wealth) so they can be covered in naked cheerleaders (or interns, as the case may be). And voila! You have the ingredients for a sex scandal stew. Rubber wet suits and dildos are just the biscuits on the side. (That happened in Alabama, if I remember correctly.)

They’re BAAACCCKKKK!!! And right on the money with:
“The only difference is that one party decided to make it a moral issue and the other one rightly thinks it’s a privacy issue.”

Jo/Atlanta – Mrs. Sanford has more money than the Governor. Her family is the SKIL tool family. . .& she was a highpowered corporate lawyer. . .so she ain’t no dummy. Who do you think handed off the emails from the governor’s private email account? How pulled the most passive-aggressive move when she said “I don’t know where he is & I don’t care”. . .she outflanked him and Ms Argentina. . .

Just a reminder to everyone that plenty of Dems can’t seem to/have not kept their pants on either. Eliot Spitzer’s actions were beyond the pale. At least Sanford is in love. But really, if his affair had not been discovered, would he have apologized? I think not. He would be sitting in his office with a smile on his face.

Yes, he has been hypocritical. But the issues are his lack of responsibiity to his office, and the possible illegal use of funds for his trip. There isn’t any law against adultery in SC is there?

Too bad his shenanigans have taken part of the spotlight off Iran. The powers that be in Iran should be thanking Sanford.

I suspect Mrs Sanford is only willing to take him back because of all the perks that come with high elected office. If his career tanks, her settlement from a divorce would be limited to a small time lawyer’s salary.

Ah Helen. Bless your feminist heart. Everytime I hear about a politician not keeping his pants zipped, I thank the stars no woman politician has been caught in the same situation. Are women smart enought to stay away from that problem, or smart enough to keep it private? My vote is smart enough to not be lured by easy sex, and smart enough to keep her eyes on the target.

Thanks, yet again, for the chuckles. Next time, don’t wait so long between posts. Your fans need their fixes on a regular basis.

The Mark Sanford sideshow has been quite interesting. Personally, I knew as soon as the story broke that no one knew exactly where he was that there had to be another woman involved. And, when it was reported that his boys didn’t even have contact with him on Father’s Day, I really knew something was up. How incredibly arrogant does one have to be to think that public officials, especially governors, could go anywhere without anyone knowing. The worst part was deceiving your staff as well as your wife. Now they look like a bunch of lying dunces.
The only good thing I saw from the whole thing was that Mrs. Sanford kicked his sorry ass to the curb a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, she is now willing to forgive him and take him back. She’s a way better woman than I would be.

Oh my, I just finished my blog post about the same thing. I wish I could say it was all Republicans but really, it seems to be a political problem. My issue with the Repubs in general is that they scream moral indiscretions, demand morality, persecute anyone who dares to have a lifeystyle that doesn’t fit their ideals, then go right ahead and do the opposite in their private lives.
It’s the hypocrisy that really, really gets me.
The only good thing about this story is that Sanford was supposed to be a candidate in 2012… another one bites the dust!

Speaking of Jeans, can we all be grateful for at least one thing? That none of these pious hypocrites has dragged his wife out to stand by him while he gives his half-assed apology. Sanford’s wife isn’t even speaking to him and I don’t blame her. The folks in South Carolina should speak to him and tell him to resign.